Scales of Bonds
by JPTorres26
Summary: CH 13 UP! 5/7/12 Before the Archangel departs for space, Shinn, Luna, Rey and Meyrin finally get the time to talk about what they mean to each other, and how they will cope with the unknown battles to come.
1. Running Away

**Gundam SEED DESTINY Fanfiction**

**Scales of Bonds**

**Written by: JPTorres26**

**Rating: T**

**Genre: Drama/Suspense**

**Chapter 1: Running Away

* * *

**

C.E. 73

ZAFT's Gibraltar Base: 2200 Hours

* * *

"They're going to have you killed!" warned Meer Campbell to Athrun Zala, after overhearing Chairman Gilbert Durandal and Rey Za Burrel's conversation not so long ago.

"So finally I have no use to them" said Athrun, while thinking of a way to get out of his unexpected predicament

"Athrun, please, you have to escape!" insisted Meer, Athrun had no other choice, it was go – or – die for him already

Suddenly, someone was knocking on Athrun's door

"Athrun Zala, we need to talk to you" said a soldier after knocking hard on the door

"Damn, they're here already" cursed Athrun, seeing there was no way out, he then told Meer to go into one corner and hide herself

"Athrun Zala, open this door!" shouted the soldier before ordering his companions to break open the door, Athrun then went outside and hid above the window, waiting for the soldiers to come there and open his chance for attack

-BANG- the door had been busted open and all the soldiers have seen was Meer sitted on the corner, shaking out of nervousness, the soldiers check the bathroom and found no signs of Athrun so they decided to check the emergency fire exit

-CRASH- "Auughh!" one of the soldiers who went out on the fire exit was hit by Athrun falling down from the ledge of the window, he then elbowed another soldier and punched the remaining one, effectively knocking all 3 out cold. He then went on to pick up one of the men's machine guns, before running down from the building, he took Meer with him

While running down the flights of stairs, Meer stopped running down and started looking at Athrun

"Meer!" he called out, reaching out his hand once more

"No!" she pushed Athrun's hand away from her

"Please Meer!" Athrun insisted once more

"But I'm Lacus Clyne!" she said "I wanna be her!" she protested

Not making any sense to Athrun whatsoever, he decides to run off and sees an open window where he can hide, he jumps in and hears someone scream

"Aaaahhh!" he then looks back to see Meyrin Hawke, in order to avoid getting unwanted attention, he runs towards her and covers her mouth

"Please, be quiet" he requested, to which Meyrin agrees to with an affirmative nod "I'm running away" he added

"What did you do?" Meyrin blankly asked

Just then, more soldiers came knocking hard on Meyrin's door

"Meyrin Hawke, we need to inspect your room" one of the soldiers said

Suddenly, Meyrin grabbed Athrun's hand and took him to the bathroom

"What are you doing!?" he asked

"Just trust me" assured Meyrin, then she took off her uniform, leaving only her bra and underwear, and turned on the shower and soaked her hair

"We're breaking in!" said the soldier, just then, Meyrin opened the door, wrapped in a towel

"What is this!?" called out Lunamaria Hawke as she was passing through the hall when she saw the soldiers and Meyrin "Meyrin!" she said as she Meyrin "How dare you!? Answering the door in a towel!?" she added

"Oh, hi sis!" she greeted Luna "I was taking a shower and I thought they were gonna break the door down"

Luna then looked angry at the soldiers "What are you going to do now!?" she said

"N-nothing ma'am, please excuse us!" the soldiers said before moving away from Meyrin's room, seeing as Luna had higher authority with her red uniform status.

"Are they gone?" Athrun asked from the inside as he got out of the bathroom

"Was that Athrun!?" Luna called out as she went inside the room, only to be surprised by Athrun covering her mouth

"Please you have to be quiet" he requested, but Luna pushed his hand away and pulled out her gun at pointed it at him

"Who are you? What are you doing in my sister's room?" she asked

"Sis, don't!" Meyrin called out "That's Athrun!" she added

"If so, what are you doing in her room?" Luna asked again, her pistol still pointed at Athrun

"I'm running away, Lunamaria" said Athrun before raising his rifle and pointing it back at her "Rey and the Chairman found no more use for me, so they want to have me killed" he added "They knew about your mission, Luna, when you spied on me when I talked to Kira"

_**How did he?....I never even told anyone about it**_ a surprised Lunamaria thought, her mission was confidential after all "How did you know about that?" she asked, lowering her gun

"It doesn't matter" he replied, before he would run towards the window, Meyrin grabbed his right arm

"We'll help you" she said, then looking at her sister, trying to get her to agree

"If what you are saying is true, Athrun" began Luna "Then I'll come with you" she said

"Luna...Meyrin...thank you" said Athrun

Meyrin then changed back into her uniform and sat in her computer

"If ever we want a chance to get off this base, we have to set a distraction" she said while typing in her computer, hacking into the security and activating the alarm on the west side of the island

"I'm heading off to the hangar, try to find some way to get us off" began Lunamaria "You two try to go to the harbor and find something, I'm sure there are a few mobile suits stationed there, they should be empty" she said

"Take care, sis" said Meyrin

"You too" said Luna as she ran out of the room and headed for the hangar

"I'll go get the car" said Meyrin to Athrun "You wait downstairs" Athrun then went out the window and began running down the stairs

After a few minutes, Meyrin arrived with the car, and Athrun got in the passenger seat

After arriving in the harbor, Athrun and Meyrin found a docked GOUF and as Athrun was pressing the platform to go up to the cockpit, shots were fired and barely missed Athrun and Meyrin. It was Rey

"You're running away again, are you!?" he shouted

"Rey!" called out Athrun "Stop shooting, Meyrin's here!" he pleaded, however, Rey kept on firing. Athrun then came out of cover and fired one shot, effectively hitting Rey's rifle, knocking it out of his hands, Rey then ran behind one of the control panels and took cover while Athrun and Meyrin got inside the GOUF and took off

Meanwhile, in the hangar of the Gibraltar Base,

"Hey, Vino" greeted Lunamaria

"Hey, Luna" said Vino "Anything I can do for you?" he asked

"Yeah, Shinn wanted me to check if the adjustments for the Impulse were done?" she said

"Yup, they're all done" said Vino "Though I'm quite surprised he wanted me to check on it without splitting it to the Core Splendor" he added

"I see" said Luna "Sorry Vino" she said before punching Vino in the stomach, knocking him out cold

Luna then raised the platform and got inside the Impulse

_**Didn't think I would be piloting this one, but I'm lucky this things already in MS mode**_ she thought **_If ever this was in Core Splendor, I would have never done this, this should be like piloting a Zaku_**

Back in the central hangar, Rey and Shinn are already preparing to launch in Destiny and Legend

"Remember Shinn, we're chasing down a spy" said Rey

"Yeah but why us?" asked Shinn

"Because we're chasing down Athrun Zala, who turned out to be a spy along with Meyrin Hawke" replied Rey

In the ocean, 20 kilometers away from Gibraltar Base, the GOUF is still running away

"Where are we going, Athrun?" asked Meyrin

"I don't believe the Archangel went down" said Athrun "They're surely hiding in ORB" he added

"ORB!? But that's still 30 kilometers from here, can this thing make it?" asked Meyrin

"Well, we better hope Lunamaria gets here before we run out of energy" said Athrun

Suddenly, the GOUF's radar beeped, and the radar showed two signatures closing in on them, when Athrun displayed the units on the monitor, he saw it was the Destiny and the Legend

"Damn, they're here!" cursed Athrun

"Athrun, stop running, just give up!" called out Shinn

"Shinn!" said Athrun

"Why do you have to do this?" asked Shinn, hesitant to attack Athrun

"Because the Chairman has abandoned me, he has no more use for me" said Athrun "And he can do that to you too, Shinn!" he added

"Don't let him deceive you Shinn!" called out Rey who fired two shots from the Legend's beam rifle

The GOUF was at an obvious disadvantage, for the two Gundams were far superior in terms of maneuverability and firepower.

Suddenly, something split the formation of the Destiny and the Legend, a beam rifle shot from behind them

"What the!?" said Rey, he displayed the incoming MS and saw that it was the Force Impulse

"The Impulse!?" said Athrun

"Lunamaria!" said Meyrin

Luna kept firing at the two Gundams and even managed to hit the left side of the Legend's DRAGOON launchers and even the right arm of the Destiny. Luna then flew past the two Gundams and then grabbed the GOUF's hand and took it away as it flew further from the two Gundams

"Damn it! They got away!" cursed Rey

"Athrun.....Meyrin.....Luna.....Why!!!?" screamed Shinn, utterly shocked as to what his friends have done to them "Why did you betray us all!?" he added


	2. The Archangel

**Chapter 2: The Archangel

* * *

**

CE 73

Onogoro Island, ORB: 2300 Hours

* * *

After Luna had managed to damage the pursuing Destiny and Legend, she had pulled the worn out GOUF along with her for 10 minutes already.

"Where are we going anyway, Athrun" she asked

"Are we close to ORB?" he replied

"Well, we have 5 kilometers left" she replied

"Slow down for a moment, I'll try to get contact with the Archangel" he said

Before Lunamaria could even slow the Impulse down, her radar started to beep, and when she looked at the radar, there was one signature heading towards them, her IFF read it as the Strike Rouge

"The Rouge? Cagalli!" said Athrun, he then changed the frequency to that of the Rouge and tried to connect

"You are now entering ORB territory, identify yourself or I will open fire" declared the pilot of the Rouge

"Wait, that voice, Kira!" said Athrun, as he was waiting for his radio to connect

"This is your last warning! Identify yourself" warned Kira

Finally, his radio connected "This is Athrun Zala, do you read me Strike?" he asked

"A-Athrun!? Is that really you?" asked Kira one more time Athrun finally appeared on Kira's monitor

"It's me, we ran away from ZAFT" said Athrun

"I understand, follow me, the Archangel's docked underwater so we have to get to Morgenroete before ZAFT finds you here" said Kira before cutting off connections and speeding off, leading the Impulse and the GOUF to the island of Onogoro, where a secret passage immediately led them to the hangar of the Archangel

* * *

CE 73

Archangel Hangar: 2330 Hours

* * *

Athrun got down from the GOUF along with Meyrin and Lunamaria got out of the Impulse

"Looks like you brought your friends with you" said Kira as he saw the two girls

"Oh, let me introduce you, Kira, these are Lunamaria and Meyrin Hawke, they helped me escape from the base" he pointed to the two girls

"I see" Kira then looked to the two girls and spoke "Thank you, for saving Athrun" he said

"It was nothing, we just did what we wanted" said Lunamaria

"If we didn't help out, Athrun might be dead now" added Meyrin

"Were you being killed again, Athrun?" asked Kira

"Yeah, but not by my father this time around" joked Athrun

"Well, guess we're just going to be standing around again" said Kira

"It seems that way, the Freedom was destroyed during the last battle, after all, and Luna even managed to get the Impulse here, but I'm guessing we can't rely on it now can we?" said Athrun

"Why's that?" asked Luna "The energy on the Impulse is still high, you know?" she added

"Yeah, but it can only be good for one battle" said Athrun "The Archangel doesn't have the Deuterion Beam so we can't recharge this thing, plus the Silhouette Packs were all aboard the Minerva"

"I guess we have no use for this thing now don't we?" said Meyrin

"No, we should just keep it this way" said Kira "We'll find a way for you to use this again, Lunamaria" he added

"Yeah, but we need to get to space fast" said Athrun

"You got that right, Athrun" added Kira "Come on, we'll show you around the ship, you'll be staying here for a while, after all" he then led the two girls around the ship, first of course was their current location, the hangar

"Hey, the kid from ZAFT, you're back again huh?" said Kojiro Murdoch, the ship's chief mechanic assigned to the hangar to maintain the mobile suits

"I guess I am Mr. Murdoch" said Athrun "Oh, let me introduce you, this is Meyrin and Lunamaria, these two helped me escape from ZAFT...again" he added

"I see" Murdoch then walked closer to Athrun and gave him a shoulder bump "Keeping yourself a ladies man, I see" he joked, to which Athrun just laughed a little at

"Well then, you kids better go see the captain, I've heard she wants to talk to you again, Athrun" said Murdoch

"We're just on the way, Mr. Murdoch" said Kira "Oh, and if you have time, can you please check on the current settings on that gundam" he asked

"Sure thing, no problem kid" said Murdoch

The four head inside the Archangel's lobby and into the mess hall where all the crew members are, everyone was surprised to see Athrun but was more surprised to see two other people with him

"Athrun? Is that you?" asked Miriallia

"Well, I ran away...again" he replied "Oh, let me introduce to you everyone, Lunamaria and Meyrin Hawke, they're the ones who saved me while I was running away" he said

"We're pleased to meet you" said Lunamaria and Meyrin as they bowed their heads to introduce themselves properly to the people of the Archangel

"Hey, nice to meet you two, name's Newmann, pilot of the Archangel"

"Romero Pal, communications CIC of the ship, hope we can get along"

"Jackie Tonomura, ship condition CIC, but just call me Tono"

"Dalida Chandra, weapons CIC, nice to meet you"

"Name's Amagi, ship's weapons controller, we would like to express our deepest gratitude for helping Captain Zala, we promise to help in any way we can"

"Captain Zala?" Lunamaria then looked towards Athrun "Since when were you a captain, Athrun?"

"Ah, well, you see when I was enlisted in ORB after the first war, I had the rank of captain but acted as Cagalli's bodyguard" replied Athrun

* * *

_**These are very good folk here **_thought Meyrin **_Don't you think so, sis?_**

_**Well yeah, I never even imagined that the Minerva crew was as nice as these people **_replied Lunamaria **_Oh, don't keep looking at me! Our telepathy is a secret, y'know_**

_**Oh, sorry, hehe, got a little carried away there

* * *

**_

"Come on, we still got the captain waiting for us" said Kira

"Oh,the captain, she's still on the bridge, I think" said Miriallia

"Thanks, Mir, we'll be heading there" said Kira

The four walked onwards the lobby headed for the bridge when somebody came running towards them

"Athrun! Athrun!" shouted Cagalli

"Cagalli!" called out Athrun

The two came running towards each other and caught one another in a warm embrace

"I was worried, and I didn't have any more reason to stay there, so I came back" said Athrun

"I'm just glad you're alive, Athrun" said Cagalli before releasing their embrace

"Cagalli, I hope you remember Lunamaria and Meyrin back at the Minerva?" said Athrun as they looked towards the two girls

"Yes, I do" said Cagalli "Thank you very much for helping Athrun, I'll never forget what you've done" she added

"It was nothing, representative" said Meyrin "Athrun told us what was going on and it really made us realize that we were fighting pointlessly" added Lunamaria

"Anyway, we're here to see the captain" said Athrun "The crew told us she wanted to see us" he added

"Yes, she's still at the bridge" said Cagalli

"By the way, Kira" began Athrun "I haven't seen Lacus anywhere, is she aboard?" he asked

"No, she went back to space, back to the Eternal" replied Kira

* * *

_**Lacus Clyne? Isn't she at the Gibraltar Base?**_ Asked Meyrin

_**Well, I think you should let Athrun explain this**_ replied Luna **_He knows better than what I have heard_**

_**This is getting more interesting**_ said Meyrin

* * *

"I see, it's a surprise you didn't go with her" said Athrun

"Actually I wanted to" began Kira "But she told me to stay, for no one is left to protect Archangel and Miss Murrue" he said "Anyway, here we are" he added as they arrived in front of a gray door. As it slid open, the bridge of the Archangel was in clear view.

"Oh, Kira, I see you've come" said Murrue as she saw Kira and the others enter the bridge "And it's good to see you back here unharmed, Athrun" she added as she looked towards Athrun

"Thank you, Captain Ramius" said Athrun "I didn't have any place to go to but here so I guess I owe you people once more" he added

"It's no problem" said Murrue "Actually, we more than happy to have you back with us, since we really don't want to have you and Kira fight like the last war" she added "And I see you have some of your friends with you" she said as she noticed Meyrin and Lunamaria standing beside Athrun

"Oh, this is Lunamaria and Meyrin Hawke, Captain Ramius" said Athrun "They're the ones who helped me get here in one piece" he added

"Is that so?" a delightful reply from Murrue "Then I guess we owe you two our thanks" she said "My name is Murrue Ramius, captain of the Archangel. My apologies though if we can't do much for you right now" she finished

"There's no need to apologize for, captain" said Meyrin

"After all, we decided on the same thing and ended up getting here" added Lunamaria "So there's really nothing for you to do for us" she said "Though we might appreciate it if we can see where we can rest"

"Oh, I'm sorry" said Murrue "Kira, would you please accompany them to their rooms" she added

"My pleasure" said Kira "Come on, girls, guessing you got tired hauling Athrun's ass back here" he addded

"Hahaha" laughed Athrun "Well, I guess you're right" he said

Kira and the others then walked back towards the lobby and headed for the empty rooms which was originally intended for the large crew of the Archangel. The rooms were for the original crew that got cut in half during the ZAFT attack on Heliopolis and got even smaller after the war,

"Here's your room princesses" said Kira as he opened the door to the room

"Look, I'm sorry I got you two involved in this" said Athrun "I really am" he added

"Hey, don't sweat it, Athrun" said Lunamaria "We really wanted to help you know" she added

"You know what" began Meyrin "We'll talk about everything else in the morning" she said

"Alright" said Athrun "Go get some sleep, girls, you need it" he added

"Thanks, Athrun, Kira" said Luna

"Don't mention it" said Kira


	3. Enter Eternal

**Chapter 3: Enter Eternal

* * *

**

CE 73

Archangel, Onogoro Island, ORB: 0100 Hours

* * *

After Kira and Athrun have brought Luna and Meyrin to their room, they head to Athrun's room to talk about some things they wanted to talk about for so long.

"Tell me, Athrun" began Kira "What made you leave ZAFT once again?" he asked

"It was thanks to Meer, the other Lacus, that I decided to leave" replied Athrun "The chairman and Rey Za Burrel, one of my co – pilots in the Minerva, found out the meeting I had with Cagalli and you. They knew about my doubts, so they found no more use for me" he added

"But that's not what you're worried about now, isn't it?" Kira asked

"Yeah, apart from the trouble I caused those two" began Athrun "I'm worried about Shinn Asuka, the pilot of the Impulse, I'm afraid he believes Rey easily, and he could end up being the chairman's pawn in this silly game of his" he said

"But we can do nothing at the moment" said Kira "All we can do is wait for the right time to come, and do what we used to do; fight together and end this war" he added

"I guess you're right, Kira" said Athrun "By the way, about the Impulse, I really have this idea in mind for it" he added

"Tell me" said Kira

"You see, we can't recharge this thing because the Deuterion Beam it needs is only available inside the Minerva" began Athrun "But if we can take this thing to the Terminal, we may be able to have them make a better version of it" he said

"I like that idea" said Kira "But who would then use that machine you want to make?" he asked

"I won't be the one to use that" replied Athrun "Lunamaria will, she's a good pilot, so I want to at least give her this to give her my thanks" he said "As for Meyrin, I really think we should have her as the Eternal's CIC, she's saved us pilots of the Minerva many times before" he added

"I agree" said Kira "But I really wonder how Lacus is doing back in space" he added

* * *

CE 73

Outer Space, PLANTS Border, Asteroid Belt, Eternal: 0130 Hours

* * *

"The Destiny Plan..." muttered Lacus as she browsed through the pages of the researcher's notebook that Martin Dacosta procured from Durandall's facility

"What is he planning?" said Andrew Waltfeld as he too looked on as Lacus browsed the pages of the notebook

Lacus then got back into her seat and starting typing on the seat's computers

"The ones who attacked and caused Junius Seven's downfall" she began "Were all Patrick Zala loyalists"

"But what do they have to do with Durandall and his Destiny Plan?" asked Dacosta

"I think they were all connected, Junius Seven.....and the Destiny Plan" said Lacus

Suddenly, the Eternal's anti MS sensor beeped and as they patched through the images on the screen, they saw a purple colored GINN shooting at their camouflage

"A Reconnaissance GINN!?" a surprised Waltfeld said "Dacosta, you were followed!"

"Whaaatt!?" a shocked Dacosta said

"All hands prepare for emergency take off" declared Waltfeld "Discard camouflage!"

"Eternal, full speed ahead, we need to get out of this area" said Lacus

As the eternal accelerated out of it's original place, they thought about a plan of how to escape the soon to arrive pursuers.

"We won't be able to make it back to the atmosphere in time" began Waltfeld "We just need to drop the machines back to the Archangel. I'll take off and hold them off as a decoy, while you guys just hurry up to the drop point"

"Take care, Commander Waltfeld" said Lacus

"I will, don't worry" said Waltfeld as he got out of the bridge and headed for the pilot's lounge to get geared up while his custom Gaia gets ready for takeoff

"Notify the Archangel" said Lacus

* * *

CE 73

Archangel, Onogoro Island, ORB: 0200 Hours

* * *

"Kira to the bridge immediately, Kira to the bridge immediately" declared Murrue over the PA system "We've received a message from the Terminal, they've been found by ZAFT" she added

"What!?" a shocked Athrun said

"We better get going" said Kira

Athrun and Kira then got out of the room and quickly ran towards the lobby and onto the bridge

"What happened!?" asked Athrun as they got to the bridge

"The Eternal has been found by ZAFT" began Murrue "They are being pursued by enemy forces and they notified us about a drop point" she said

"Oh, no" gasped Kira

"We can't just let them do the drop" said Athrun "We need to get there and help them, Commander Waltfeld won't be able to hold the enemy off alone!" he added

"You're right" said Kira

Kira then looked around to find a way to get to space fast, then he saw Cagalli, and remembered she still had a Strike. He then held Cagalli's shoulders

"Cagalli, let me borrow the Rogue" he said

"Sure" said Cagalli

"Captain, are the Strike's rocket boosters still on ship?" he asked

"Yes, there are still four boosters left" replied Murrue

_**Four boosters? Then it should be able to accommodate two mobile suits!**_ Thought Athrun

"I'll head out too" said Athrun "I'll use the Impulse"

"Alright then, you two be careful" said Murrue "Remember that you will be facing both mobile suits and ships" she added

"Don't worry, we will" said Athrun

The two then headed off to the pilot lounge and got dressed up and waited for both the Strike and the Impulse to be attached with the rocket boosters. The plan is to launch one MS after the other and send them off to space.

"Strike, ready for launch!" declared chief Murdoch, a few moments later "Impulse, ready for launch!"

After Athrun and Kira boarded their mobile suits, Murdoch radioed them in

"Kira, are you going to use the same setup as the Strike?" he asked

"Yes, Mr. Murdoch" replied Kira

"How about you, kid, care to give us the details on that machine" Murdoch asked Athrun

"ZGMF – X56S Alpha, Force Impulse" replied Athrun

"Okay, Mr. Murdoch I'm taking off!" declared Kira

"Everybody take cover!!!!" shouted Murdoch as Kira started off the booster engines

"Kira Yamato, Strike, launching!" Kira said as the island's secret door opened to make way for the launch

After Kira had taken off, it was Athrun's turn to take off

"Athrun Zala, Impulse, launching!" Athrun said he also took off

_**Good luck, you two**_ thought Murrue as she saw the two mobile suits take off

* * *

CE 73

Outer Space, PLANTS Border, Asteroid Belt: 0215 hours

* * *

"Damn it! How the hell did they get so many guys here so fast!?" cursed Waltfeld as he shot down two more ZAKUs in his custom Gaia

He was then caught off guard by two GOUF IGNITED units that then strangled his Gaia's arms, rendering him unable to move. He had no other option but to pull them towards each other when his sensors started to beep.

"What now!?" he grunted, but when he looked to see what was heading on towards him "The Strike!" he said, but then he saw something else "What!? The Impulse!?" he said

The two mobile suits then discarded their hyper boosters and opened fire at the arms of the GOUFs to free the entangled Gaia.

"Mr. Waltfeld! Are you alright?" called out Athrun

"Athrun Zala!? Is that you!?" a surprised Waltfeld asked

"Yes, Mr. Waltfeld" replied Athrun

"Is the Eternal alright?" asked Kira

"Yeah, it's still standing" said Waltfeld "But I fear it won't last longer if this keeps on" he added

Suddenly, the Strike's arm was hit by a stray beam and exploded, the Strike's beam rifle then flew towards the Gaia. Waltfeld grabbed it and he returned fire to the ZAKU, along with the Impulse.

"You two get back to the Eternal! You won't last long here" said Waltfeld "Go and get your new machines" he added

"Right" replied Athrun and Kira

The Impulse then covered the disarmed Strike as it positioned itself below the Eternal, to its emergency mobile suit retrieval mechanism, but then another stray beam hit the Strike's legs, barely missing the torso cockpit

"Aaahhh!" cried out Kira as the legs exploded beneath him

"Kira!" called out Lacus and Athrun as they saw the Strike took a critical hit

"I-I'm alright" replied Kira _**Damn, this machine's gotten old**_ he thought

After the Strike had been pulled inside, it was the Impulse that was pulled next, just as the Impulse's Variable Phase Shift Armor fades and the last of the suit's energy was depleted.

After Athrun and Kira had gone out of their suits, they quickly rush to the ship's hall to meet Lacus, who welcomed Kira in a warm embrace

"I'm glad we made it" said Kira

"Me too, I'm glad you're here, Kira" said Lacus before putting a soft kiss on Kira's lips

"We need to go, Kira" said Athrun "Captain Waltfeld won't be able to hold them that long" he added

"Right" replied Kira "Let's go"

The three then entered a large hangar with two mobile suits standing beside one another. The lights then turned on and both Kira and Athrun recognize the two suits as the Freedom and the Justice.

Kira notices that Lacus was looking down and worried and holds her hand

"Thank you, Lacus" said Kira "With this machine, we can all fight together again, the way we know how" he added

"Kira" replied Lacus

"Wait for us" said Kira "We'll be back, and once we do, we can go back to our friends" he added

"Alright" replied Lacus

Athrun and Kira then got into their machines and started configuring their mobile suits' OS

* * *

**G**eneration

**U**nsubdued

**N**uclear

**D**rive

**A**ssault

**M**odule

* * *

_**The same OS, but with upgraded weaponry**_ thought Athrun as he finally input the finishing touches to his preferred configuration

"You ready, Kira?" he asked

"I'm good" he replied "Let's go, Athrun"

The Eternal's catapult door then opened and the guide lights turned on

"X20A, Strike Freedom, go ahead, launch!" called out Lacus

"Kira Yamato, Freedom, let's do it!" said Kira as the catapult launched him out of the ship

"X19A, Infinite Justice, please, take off!"

"Athrun Zala, Justice launching!" said Athrun as he followed launch

The attacking ZAFT pilots were then alerted by two signatures rapidly approaching their forces

"What's that, it's too fast!" said a GOUF pilot, who had his unit shot in the limbs by the Freedom

"The Freedom!" said one as he recognized the approaching mobile suit before getting his ZAKU slashed up by the Justice

"Th...the Jachin Due Gundams!" called out one ZAKU pilot who got rammed by the FATUM-02 Jetpack of the Justice

Kira flew high above the ships and then launched his 11 DRAGOON units

"Hit it!" he cried out, effectively hitting all guns of the Nazca class ships

Athrun on the other hand dispatched his FATUM-02 jetpack with it's beam cutters activated towards the fleet's engines, piercing through one ship through the next

In just under 5 minutes, Kira and Athrun were able to immobilize 25 ZAKU units, 15 GOUF units and 4 Nazca Class ships, having maintained zero kill count.

"Looks like the duo's back" said Waltfeld "Don't you agree?" he asked Lacus

"I agree" she replied "I'm just glad they both made it"


	4. Sisters of Amethyst

**Chapter 4: Sisters of Amethyst

* * *

**

CE 73

Archangel, Onogoro Island, ORB: 0600 Hours

* * *

After more than 6 hours of sleep, Luna and Meyrin finally wake up.

"Hey sis, what time is it?" asked Meyrin

Lunamaria then looked at the wall clock at the far side of the room to see that it was only 6 in the morning

"6 in the morning" she replied "Wow, I only slept for 6 hours but I feel like I've slept forever" she added

"Me too" said Meyrin "Why don't we try walking around the ship?" she asked

"Good idea, let's go" agreed Lunamaria

After the two got dressed back into their ZAFT uniforms, they headed out of their room and wandered around the lobby and came across Cagall, who was seemingly impatient and uneasy.

"Good morning, representative" greeted Luna

"Good morning, you two" greeted Cagalli "Have you slept well?" she asked

"Yes, we did, all thanks to you, Ms. Athha" said Meyrin

"Oh please, it's like we never each other, just call me Cagalli" said Cagalli "Anyway, you two walking around the ship? Or did you want to see the captain?" she asked

"We were actually just walking" said Luna "You seem to be waiting for something" she added, noticing Cagalli's uneasiness and impatience

"Yeah, it's Kira and Athrun" said Cagalli

"What about them?" asked Meyrin

"I guess you didn't know" said Cagalli "The two went back to space to rescue the Eternal, they were found by ZAFT and were pursued, good thing is that they made it on time and were able to defend the Eternal" she added "But what's taking them so long to get back here!?" she suddenly blurted out

"Wait! You mean Kira and Athrun went back to space?" asked Luna "But how could they do that when the Archangel only has one mobile suit onboard?" she added

"Athrun took the Impulse while Kira borrowed the Rouge" said Cagalli

"I see" said Meyrin _**But the Impulse doesn't have much energy left doesn't it? **_she added

_**You're right**_ replied Luna _**Who knows, maybe he might have done something to it**_

"Well, if you two wanted to go to the bridge I can accompany you" asked Cagalli

"Sure thing, thank you" replied Luna, the three then headed towards the bridge

As the door to the bridge opened, Murrue called Cagalli's attention immediately

"Miss Cagalli!" she called out

"Captain Ramius, what's the matter?" asked Cagalli

"I think you better see this" said Murrue, before turning on the large LCD screen on the Archangel's bridge to see PLANTS Chairman Gilbert Durandall

"This is a message from the PLANTS Chairman Gilbert Durandall to the ORB Union. We have tracked down the leader of LOGOS Lord Djibril to your nation. We demand that you hand him over to us before he rendezvous with the other LOGOS Members via your country's Mass Driver. If you will hand Djibril over to us, we would assure your nation's safety and would not issue an attack, but if you won't comply to this ultimatum, we would have no choice but to forcefully take Djibril off your hands. We will give you 24 hours to reply to this warning"

"Oh no!" cried out Cagalli "I better get back to base command before things get out of hand!" she said

"Miss Cagalli, wait!" called out Murrue "We can't do anything rash," she said "You know you can't force the Seirans to hand over Djibril even if you are Cagalli Yula Athha"

"I know" said Cagalli "But it's more pointless if I do nothing, right?" she protested

"It would be better if you waited for the boys to get back" said Neo, who was listening to the conversation from his quarters "Don't worry, they'll be here soon, and sure enough, they'll bring some presents with them" he added

"I-I understand" said Cagalli

"I'm sorry, but we can't allow you to get caught in the middle of this chaos" said Murrue "All we can do now is wait for Kira and Athrun to come back, or if they don't make it in time, let's hope that the Seirans would hand over Djibril, or ORB can be put in danger again" she added

* * *

CE 73

Eternal, Earth's Orbit: 0630 Hours

* * *

"What's this?" asked Athrun as he saw another mobile suit behind the three DOM which Lacus told him about a minute ago. He observed the mobile suit more and recognized it "I-is this..the Impulse!?" he asked

"Yes" replied Lacus

"But how did you get this?" asked Kira

"After the Armory One incident, some guys who worked on the Impulse sent data to the Terminal, and of course, the Terminal had to make something better" began Waltfeld "With combined technologies of ORB, ZAFT and the Alliance, the Terminal was able to come up with a more powerful version of the Impulse" he said

"But this one isn't like the one we had brought here" said Athrun as he noticed that this Impulse had more weapons than the one Lunamaria took with them

"That's because this thing is one whole Impulse" said Waltfeld

"One whole Impulse?" asked Kira

"You know that the Impulse uses three different weapon sets, or 'Silhouettes', right? The guys here at the Terminal eliminated that problem and installed the features of the Force, Sword and the Blast Impulses into this one machine" he began "But of course that would require more energy, and we can't have the Eternal or the Archangel use a Deuterion Beam every now and then, right? So this Impulse is equipped with a Neutron – Jammer Canceller, just like the Infinite Justice and the Strike Freedom"

"So the Terminal hasn't given up on using N-Jammers, huh?" said Athrun

"So who would use this mobile suit?" asked Kira

"That we haven't decided yet" said Lacus "But, I think Athrun knows someone who would" she added

_**Lunamaria, would she be alright with this?**_ Thought Athrun

"Yeah, I know someone" he said

* * *

CE 73

Archangel, Onogoro Island, ORB: 0700 Hours

* * *

With the reply of the Seirans to Durandall's demand that denies ORB providing asylum to Djibril, ZAFT forces are already on their way to strike ORB. Along with the submarines and mobile suits of ZAFT is their powerful warship Minerva with the two powered up Gundams Destiny and Legend.

After the ZAFT forces breach ORB territory, the first showdown begins almost immediately, missiles were fired from marine ships, mobile suits were launched from both sides and crossfire ensues.

After a few hours into the crossfire, ZAFT lost 10% of its forces while ORB has lost already more than 30% of their forces and is threatened to lose more as a few ZAFT mobile suits had reached ground and are overpowering the ORB ground defenders consisting only of M1 Abrams tanks and .50 caliber heavy machineguns

With the heavy damage done to their military and the nation, Cagalli can't take the attack anymore and proposes to take the remaining Skygrasper

"Please, Captain Ramius, let me take the Skygrasper!" she pleaded with Murrue

"You can't, Miss Cagalli!" retorted Murrue

With no other option but to force herself to run to the hangar, Cagalli turns around and runs for the door of the bridge, but then bumps into Leodonir Kisaka, her bodyguard, and Erica Simmons, ORB's Chief Engineer in Morgenroete

"Cagalli" said Kisaka as he saw Cagalli in a hurry

"Out of my way, Kisaka, I'm heading out!" said Cagalli

"Wait!" said Kisaka as he restrained Cagalli, preventing her from getting out of the bridge

"What are you doing!? I have to save ORB!" protested Cagalli as she struggled to force herself out of Kisaka

"That's exactly why we're here, Lady Cagalli" said Erica "We're here to help you protect our nation" she added

"What?" a surprised Cagalli asked

"If you can come with us, Lady Cagalli" said Erica "Then you can hear Lord Uzumi's last words for you and for ORB"

"Alright, I will" replied Cagalli

* * *

CE 73

Eternal, Asteroid Belt: 0730 Hours

* * *

"I'll pilot this?" asked Lacus while she, Kira and Athrun were standing in front of the Impulse in their pilot suits

"Yes" replied Athrun

"But are you sure she'll..."

"Don't worry, Lunamaria will understand, after all, she too wants to put this chaos to an end" said Athrun

"Ok, guys listen up" said Waltfeld over the PA system "ORB is currently engaging the ZAFT forces over their territory, and we received information that nearly half of ORB's fighting strength is taken out, we're nearing the ORB drop point so you kids get ready now"

"Alright, let's go" said Kira "Just stay with us, Lacus, you'll be fine" he added

The three then got into their mobile suits and commenced final configurations on their mobile suits. Lacus sets the Variable PS armor of the Impulse to the color violet

"We're here, launch now!" said Waltfeld

"Athrun Zala, Justice launching!" declared Athrun as he took off from the catapult

"Kira Yamato, Freedom, let's do it!" declared Kira as he followed launch from the catapult

"Lacus Clyne, Impulse, taking off!" declared Lacus as she accelerated out of the ship

The Justice and the Freedom then lined up beside each other while the Impulse stays behind them during re – entry. After one minute, the three reached the atmosphere and set their boosters to full launch. Re – entry was rough for the Impulse so the Justice and Freedom held it's hands to make sure that Lacus wouldn't get left behind in the fast entrance.

* * *

CE 73

Morgenroete Underground Facility, Onogoro Island, ORB: 0800 Hours

* * *

After an hour from the Archangel, which has finally surfaced to defend ORB territory, Cagalli, along with Kisaka, Amagi and Erica finally reached the Morgenroete Underground Facility, where Erica told them about a weapon Cagalli can use to defend her country

"There are words etched on that plate, read them" said Erica

"I wish that the day when this door need be opened never arrives" said Cagalli

As the large door in front of them opened, it revealed a large, dark room

"The day when this door need be opened" repeated Erica "The day when ORB is in danger of being scorched by war again, that's what he meant" she said

"Wha-where are we?" asked Cagalli

"Here it is, the legacy of Lord Uzumi slid away into you" replied Erica

Erica then turned on the lights to reveal a shining, golden mobile suit

"A golden Gundam...." said Cagalli as she saw the large, golden gundam, then suddenly she heard a familiar voice

* * *

"Cagalli, should the day come when you have a need for additional power, consider this gift my answer to that need, there are many things I wasn't able to teach you my daughter, but if you have an open heart, you can learn everything you will ever need from those around you. From those who love and support you, therefore I can only give you what you see now before you. Power is whatever one makes of it, foolish are those who hope for it in excess, in equal in foolish are those who resent it for no reason. Think of it as a sword, for protection. If you need this now, then take it, if it will help you walk the right path, it is yours. However, I have hope the day would never come that this door would be opened, if it has been opened, then these words would have been left in vain. But my dear Cagalli, I wish you a long and happy life."

* * *

During the speech Cagalli broke down in tears, while Amagi and Erica had tears forming in their eyes as their greatest leader spoke his last will for Cagalli.

"Father, o father!" she said in between tears

Kisaka then knelt beside her

"Cagalli, would you take the Akatsuki" he asked

"The Akatsuki...." began Cagalli "Yes" she nod her head

Cagalli then got into her pilot suit and headed for the Akatsuki immediately, she then turned it on and saw the OS

* * *

**ORB – 01 Akatsuki**

**M.O.S.**

**G**eneral

**U**nilateral

**N**euro-link

**D**ispersive

**A**utonomic

**M**aneuver

* * *

"ORB – 01 Akatsuki, system activated, go ahead, launch" said Erica over the PA as the gates of the Underground Facility opened up above the Akatsuki

"Cagalli Yula Athha, Akatsuki, taking off!" declared Cagalli as she flew up towards the skies of ORB

Cagalli, along with Kisaka's squadron of Murasames then flew along the coast of ORB to hold back the attacking ZAFT forces, taking out at least 2 platoons of GOUF, ZAKU and BABI units. The ZAFT mobile suits' beam attack were rendered useless by the Akatsuki as its "Yata no Kagami" anti – beam coating armor either absorbed or deflected the beams.

With the ZAFT Forces assault held back temporarily, the Minerva arrived along with the upgraded units Destiny and Legend. Shinn then launched in Destiny and took out ORB's first line of defense consisting of Murasames and Astrays before it finally saw the Akatsuki.

"What's this, a new mobile suit?" said Shinn "You're in my way, go down!" he shouted as he took out his high powered beam cannon and shot the Akatsuki, but only to have it deflected back at him, which nearly hit the Destiny

"It deflected the beam" noticed Shinn "In that case" he then brought out one of his anti – ship swords and activated the "Wings of Light" boosters of the Destiny and headed straight for the Akatsuki

With the Mirage Colloid capabilities of the Destiny's boosters, Cagalli was seeing a double of Destiny as it moved near her. She then found it in front of her and shielded the sword, knocking her back far. Shinn then threw one boomerang at Cagalli which cut off one of its arms and then threw another one, making both boomerangs approach both sides. Just before the Akatsuki would be cut in half, the boomerangs were shot by a missile, the explosion knocking the Akatsuki back further

"Aaaahhh!" cried Cagalli as the boomerangs exploded beside her

Then Shinn looked up to see who had shot his boomerangs to find two mobile suits descending towards him fast

"What!?" he didn't even have a chance to retaliate as something large came crashing against the Destiny "Aaaaahhh!"

As the images on the screen finally appeared on both the Minerva and the Archangel finally appeared, both Captain Ramius and Captain Gladys were surprised to see the Freedom and the Justice.

"K-Kira? A-Athrun? Is that you?" asked Cagalli

"Ms. Murrue, please cover Lacus" said Kira, looking back to see that Lacus, piloting the Impulse, is nearing the Archangel "Cagalli, we'll take care of this, get back to command HQ" said Kira

_**Is that the Impulse?**_ Asked Luna, who was seated with Meyrin on the Archangel's Weapons CIC

_**It is, the identification code it's sending is identical to the Impulse, ZGMF – X56S/ε **_replied Meyrin

_**Come with me, let's look at it**_ said Luna

_**Alright**_ agreed Meyrin

Before Meyrin and Luna could stand up and head for the hangar, they receive a transmission from Athrun

"Lunamaria, take the Impulse, it's going to land there soon" he said

_**Did Athrun just give me a new machine? **_Wondered Luna

_**That's definitely something, sis**_ said Meyrin **_Come on, let's go_**

"Thank you, Athrun" Luna replied before she and Meyrin got off the bridge and headed for the hangar. Once they arrive, Lacus was just landing, and once she landed, she got off the Impulse and saw Luna and Meyrin standing before the Impulse

_**Lacus Clyne!?**_ A surprised Lunamaria asked **_So there really are two Lacuses_**

_**Two of them? So you're saying that the one in the PLANTS is the fake one?** _Asked Meyrin

_**Yeah, that's what I was supposed to tell you about**_ said Luna

"You must be Miss Lunamaria and Miss Meyrin" said Lacus as she got down from the Impulse

"Ah....yes" replied Luna

"I want to thank you personally, for what you did with Athrun" said Lacus "And because of that, we wanted to entrust you with this, Miss Lunamaria" she added

"Miss Lacus..." said Luna "I...I can't thank you enough for this!" she said

"You don't have to, saving Athrun was really a better favor than this" said Lacus "It's just like what Kira and Athrun said once, '_Power is whatever one makes of it, and it's up to one whether to use that power or not for his own good'_ And now that you have the power, will you choose to accept this Impulse to fight to end this war?" she added

_**Fight to end the war.......now that I have the power? Should I use this new weapon?**_ Luna wondered

_**Athrun has full faith in your abilities, Luna, I strongly believe that**_ said Meyrin

"Power is whatever one makes of it....and it's up to me whether I should use that power, right?" Luna asked

"Yes, exactly" replied Lacus

"If that is the case" began Luna "Then I accept this Impulse, to help put an end to this war" she said

"Thank you, Miss Lunamaria" said Lacus

Luna then got into a pilot suit that was available in the Archangel's pilot lockers, luckily for her, there was a velvet colored pilot suit. She then headed for the Impulse and got inside, once she started the Impulse, she was very surprised at what she saw

* * *

**ZGMF – X56S/ε Amethyst Impulse**

**Mobile OS**

**G**eneration

**U**nsubdued

**N**uclear

**D**rive

**A**ssault

**M**odule

**COMPLEX

* * *

**

_**Nuclear Drive Assault Module? Don't tell me this things equipped with N-Jammers?**_ She thought, remembering the days in the academy, where she read about the banned N-Jammer Technologies after the Bloody Valentine War, and the OS that the Freedom, Justice and Providence used. Luna then took a look next in the armaments of the A. Impulse

* * *

**GSX-X56S Voiture Lumiere**

**MMI-GAU25A 20mm CIWS, fire-linked x2 (Head - Mounted)**

**M71-AAK "Folding Razor" anti-armor knife x2 (Hip - Hidden)**

**MX2200 beam shield generator (R. Arm)**

**RQM60 "Flash-Edge" beam boomerang x2 (Shoulder - Mounted)**

**MMI-710 "Excalibur" anti-ship sword x2 (Back Chest - Mounted)**

**MA-BAR72 high-energy beam rifle (Back Hip - Mounted)**

**M2000F "Kerberos" high-energy long-range beam cannon x2 (Hip - Folding)

* * *

**

_**Wow, this thing has the abilities of all 3 Silhouettes of the original Impulse! How amazing that I get to pilot this, considering it's also colored Violet, my favorite color**_ she thought

"X56S Epsilon, Amethyst Impulse, go ahead, launch!" declared Miriallia over the PA

As Luna walked the Impulse towards the catapult, Meyrin watched from the ground _**Don't do anything reckless, sis**_ she warned

_**Don't worry, I'll be back fine**_ assured Luna before she positions the Amethyst in the catapult

"Lunamaria Hawke, Amethyst launching!" declared Luna as she launched from the Archangel

* * *

**Because of the new mobile suit introduced, it's just right to provide additional data about the Gundam, just to give you guys an idea of how Luna would use her new Amethyst. So here it is, I hope everyone enjoyed reading and please feel free to review.**

ZGMF – X56S/ε Amethyst Impulse

* * *

Manufacturer: Terminal/Clyne Faction

* * *

Height: 18.41 Meters

* * *

Weight: 80.09 Metric Tons

* * *

Power – Plant: Ultracompact Hyper – Deuterion Nuclear Reactor

* * *

Accommodation: Pilot only; cockpit in chest

* * *

Armor: Variable Phase Shift Armor (Original color: Violet/Amethyst)

* * *

Armaments

GSX-X56S Voiture Lumiere

A compact version of the Voiture Lumiere propulsion system that the Stargazer gundam possesses. It provides twice the output of the Force Impulse's booster pack and leaves trails of Mirage Colloid particles, creating a visual effect similar to the Destiny's, only at a smaller extent

* * *

MMI-GAU25A 20mm CIWS, fire-linked x2 (Head – Mounted)

A mobile suit version of the Archangel's "Igelstellung" CIWS machine gun.

* * *

M71-AAK "Folding Razor" anti-armor knife x2 (Hip – Hidden)

The same MS anti – armor knife that the Impulse uses

* * *

MX2200 beam shield generator (R. Arm)

The same beam shield generator used by the Destiny, Legend, I. Justice and the S. Freedom

* * *

RQM60 "Flash-Edge" beam boomerang x2 (Shoulder – Mounted)

A beam boomerang originally used by the Sword Impulse, upgraded to increase output and can be substituted as a beam saber

* * *

MMI-710 "Excalibur" anti-ship sword x2 (Back Chest – Mounted)

The same anti – ship sword used on the Sword Impulse and the Destiny

* * *

MA-BAR72 high-energy beam rifle (Back Hip – Mounted)

The highest caliber of beam rifle used on any Gundam, second only to S. Freedom and Legend's railguns

* * *

M2000F "Kerberos" high-energy long-range beam cannon x2 (Hip – Folding)

A downgraded version of the high – energy beam cannon of the Blast Impulse is used on the Amethyst, with the design similar to that of the S. Freedom's linear cannon


	5. Friend or Foe

**Chapter 5: Friend or Foe

* * *

**

CE 73

Onogoro Island, ORB: 0800 Hours

* * *

"Lunamaria Hawke, Amethyst launching!" Luna declared as she launched from the Archangel

After taking off, Luna headed in the center of the fray, where the battle is at its highest intensity. There, she saw the Freedom and the Justice fighting against the Destiny, which was certainly at a disadvantage in terms of numbers and skill.

_**Shinn!**_She thought

Athrun and Kira then saw the Amethyst incoming, headed towards the Destiny

"Lunamaria!" called out Athrun

"What are you doing!?" called out Kira

Shinn then saw another mobile suit coming towards him and immediately recognized the figure

_**The Impulse!?**_ A surprised Shinn thought **_Luna!_** He then suddenly remembered

Luna then took out one of her anti – ship swords and struck at Shinn, which he parried with his own anti – ship sword.

"Shinn!" she called out "Please stop fighting! We don't need to see each other like this!" she added

"Lunamaria...." muttered Shinn "Why? Why did you betray us!?" he cried out "I had no one left, Luna, because you left me!" he added

Luna then felt tears in her eyes "I didn't want to leave you, Shinn" she began "But what Athrun has told us was true, the Chairman needs you now but he's going to kill you once you become useless!" she cried out, finally letting her tears fall "I don't want to come to that time, Shinn! Because....because"

Just as Lunamaria could continue, a series of beams separated her from the Destiny

"Wha!?" Luna was caught off guard, looking left to see what has shot the beam, seeing the Legend approach her

"Lunamaria, you of all people betrayed us, that crime is unforgivable!" called out Rey "You're traitors who escaped their just punishment, what are you people trying to do here?" he added "Don't lose your focus, Shinn!"

"What? Right!" said Shinn who then followed in Rey's attack on the Amethyst

"I'm sorry, Luna, but what Rey said is right" he said before striking Luna with his anti – ship sword, cutting off the Amethyst's left arm

"Aaahhh!" cried Luna who got knocked away by the Destiny's strike "If that's what you're going to do, then you give me no choice, Shinn" she said "I must stop you myself!"

Luna then sees a vision of what she and Meyrin experienced when they were young, losing their parents in the war and what she told Meyrin before she took off from the Archangel _**'I'll protect you Meyrin, no matter what happens, you have my word'**_

Luna then felt like everything around her was slowing down, and before the Destiny could stab through the cockpit with it's anti – ship sword, Luna used her high energy beam cannons to blow the Destiny away.

"Lunamaria....you too" began Athrun "Possess the SEED?" he said as he noticed Lunamaria's pupils shrank and her violet pupils dilated

"Yaaaaahhh!" cried Lunamaria as she took out her second anti – ship sword and put her thrusters on full burst, creating the visual illusion due to the Mirage Colloid particles, Shinn, who had been knocked away by the cannon blast of the Amethyst, had no idea that it was about to get hit once again by Luna

Suddenly, the Legend intervened and parried the Amethyst's sword with its beam javelin

"Shinn! Retreat!" Rey called out before aiming his attached DRAGOON units to the Amethyst, which Lunamaria easily flipped over

* * *

The battle rages on between the Amethyst and the Legend when the Freedom and the Justice focus their attention on disarming all ZAFT Mobile Suits attacking Onogoro

"Athrun!" called out Kira

"Let's do it!" said Athrun

The two then activated their multi – lock systems and aimed for the limbs of all ZAFT mobile suits, once they both have 30 targets locked – on, they commence fire and with just two rounds of beam blasts, 30 ZAKU units, 20 GOUF units and 10 BABI units were disabled.

* * *

With the Destiny resupplied and recharged, Shinn was ready to go once again to fight the three, he went back into his machine and commenced launch

"Shinn Asuka, Destiny, launching!" he declared as he sped out of the Minerva

"Rey!" he called out, firing multiple shots from his beam rifle to separate the Amethyst and the Legend's deadlock, while Rey fired his DRAGOON units again as he moved back, which Luna blocked with her anti – beam shield

Shinn then combined his two anti – ship swords and activated the "Wings of Light" thrusters

"If I can't talk you into coming back with us" began Shinn "Then you leave me no choice but to fight you!" he said before going into SEED mode.

The Destiny and Amethyst then came towards one another and crossed swords with one another multiple times before parrying each other's anti – beam shield.

"You don't deserve to be treated like a puppet Shinn!" cried out Lunamaria

"You don't know what you're saying!" replied Shinn, to Luna's shock "All I know now, is that you're a traitor who deserves to be punished!" he added, increasing his thrust to knock back the Amethyst

"You don't even know what you're doing to yourself!" said Luna before flying away from the Destiny "Or what you're doing to me!" she added, before throwing a beam boomerang, which Shinn deflected with the Destiny's leg beam saber

"Damn it!" said Shinn as he once again put the Destiny in a deadlock with the Amethyst, but instead of keeping it that way, Shinn flew back a little and activated his palm cannon, which Luna tried to block with her beam shield, but to no effect, as the palm cannon was so strong that it disabled the beam shield and detonated the Amethyst's right arm, causing more damage to her Gundam

"Aaaahhhh!" cried out Luna

"Lunamaria!" said Kira and Athrun as they noticed the Amethyst being blown away, they then immediately headed to her aid

As a desperate measure, Luna once again tried to damage the Destiny by firing her high energy beam cannons multiple times, expending a large amount of energy, yet it only manage to hit the Destiny's left arm and right foot

As Luna noticed the energy being drained and her phase shift fading, she also saw the Destiny making it's last strike with the palm cannon. As Luna closed her eyes and waited for the killing blow, she was surprised that the attack didn't connect.

The Freedom and the Justice had driven the Destiny away from her, and as both Kira and Athrun go into SEED mode, the battle went to their side. As the Justice rode in it's flight pack to ram the Legend from behind and the Freedom using it's hyper chest cannon to disable the beam shield of the Destiny.

The Minerva, who had taken charge of the ZAFT forces, then launched it's signal flares, signaling the retreat of all the ZAFT forces as it suffered great losses with the sinking of it's flagship St. Hellens and the destruction of nearly half its mobile suit strength. The Destiny and the Legend then flew off along with the surviving mobile suit units of ZAFT.

As Luna watched the retreating ZAFT forces, she felt her vision blurring and slowly, she felt darkness take over her. As the remaining PS armor of the Amethyst faded, it came crashing down to the ocean with Luna unconscious.

"Luna!" called out Athrun as he launched his flight pack to catch the falling Impulse.

* * *

CE 73

Archangel, Morgenroete Facility, ORB: 0900 Hours

* * *

Once they return to the Archangel, Kira, Athrun and Meyrin were able to give off a sigh of relief as they found out that Lunamaria had only exhausted herself because of her very first SEED mode usage.

"I can't believe she was able to do that" said Athrun

"Yeah, same here" said Kira "I bet she got worn out using her SEED" he added

"I guess you're right" agreed Athrun "Anyway, I think it's best for me to take her to her room for awhile, she needs some rest" he said

"I agree, we'll come there later" said Kira "For now, we need to focus on repairing the Impulse and of ORB" he added

"We'll wait for you" said Athrun as she carried Lunamaria out of the Amethyst's cockpit and to her room, where he laid her in bed

* * *

"Is Luna okay?" asked a worried Meyrin

"She's fine, she's just tired" replied Athrun "Lunamaria fought well, you know, being even a match for Shinn" he added

"Really? I knew she could do it" said Meyrin "She always dreamed about flying like Shinn and I guess she's happy that she already has, I know I am happy for her" she added

"But I don't know about that" said Athrun

"Why's that?" asked Meyrin

"Because earlier, when we fought, Lunamaria didn't really want to fight Shinn" began Athrun "More likely, she was convincing him to come with her, here in ORB, in the Archangel" he said "I know I'm not one to judge but I'm thinking that Luna's hurt more than anything else now, Shinn is important to her, I know" he finished

"That's because Lunamaria loves Shinn" replied Meyrin "Ever since we left Gibraltar, she was worrying about nothing else but Shinn, she's worried that the time comes where they will fight, and she really doesn't want that to happen" she added

"I see, but until Shinn really listens to Luna, I doubt he would ever come to terms with what she means" said Athrun "All we can hope for now, is that Shinn doesn't give in to the words of Chairman Durandall and Rey"

* * *

**Another chapter finished, sorry if it was a little short, I really wanted to get the idea out of my head to make room for the next one. To the people who expect regular updates, I'm sorry but I can't guarantee that I update regularly cause I got school to worry about but I'll try my best. Maybe the longest time I can have is 2 weeks before an update. I hope everyone enjoyed reading and please review, that's what they keep me going.**

**About Lunamaria's SEED, it's because of her desire to protect Meyrin from all harm and would be willing to do everything she can to do so. As some of you might notice, Lunamaria's Gundam is named after the color of her eyes; Amethyst – Violet.**


	6. The Nature of Strength

**Chapter 6: The Nature of Strength

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**

CE 73

Archangel, Onogoro Island Docks: 1100 Hours

* * *

Lunamaria opened her eyes, and saw her sister Meyrin, sitting asleep beside her bed, she could also make out that she was back in their room in the Archangel. She tried to remember what had happened to her but the only thing she could remember was the Destiny heading on to stab her mobile suit.

_**What happened....to me?**_ She wondered

Meyrin then woke up and saw that her sister was already awake

"Luna, you're awake!" she said

"Yeah, but what happened to me?" asked Luna

"You passed out after using your SEED" said Athrun as he entered the room along with Cagalli, Kira and Lacus "Not surprisingly though, since it was your first time" he added

"SEED? What is that?" asked Meyrin

"Superior Evolutionary Element Destined factor, or SEED as we call it" began Lacus "Is a person's special ability to enter a state of enhanced spatial awareness and peak physical ability" she said "You can call it a more advanced type of adrenaline" she finished

_**Adrenaline, huh? But I don't remember anything of the sort**_ wonder Luna

"But how would I have that?" asked Luna

"That is because you either had the strong desire to protect someone........" began Athrun "Or the desire to kill someone" he said "That is how you had discovered your SEED" he finished

"Desire to protect someone......or desire to kill someone" muttered Luna "I'm not even sure if I felt one of those, if I wanted to protect Meyrin, or if I wanted to kill Shinn" she said

_**This is the first time I've ever seen a SEED user have doubts about their feelings**_ thought Lacus

"It's just normal for you to wonder how you were suddenly able to match Shinn" said Cagalli

_**I was....able to match Shinn?**_ Wondered Luna, much to her delight

_**Yeah, you were nearly able to defeat him, you know **_said Meyrin

_**I can't believe it, I really did that?**_ Said a very amazed Luna

The sisters exchanging surprised and happy looks all of a sudden took everyone else by surprise. They thought that the two may have been communicating by body language of some sort. Safe to say as they knew each other for their whole lives and might have gotten used to talking without words.

"You know, you really took Athrun and I by surprise out there earlier" said Kira "I never knew you would be able to fight back despite the hesitation you had earlier in the battle" he added

"Really?" said Luna, still not believing at what she was hearing "Truth is, I really didn't want to fight him, 'cause I know it would only hurt him more" she added

"That's because you love him, right?" said Athrun, which took everyone by surprise, especially Luna, whose face was turning hot red

_**Wha-How....did he...know!?**_ A shocked Luna asked

_**Ooops, guess my tongue slipped a little, heehee**_ replied Meyrin, who was slightly teasing her sister

"Yes, I love him, and I don't want to see him get hurt" said Luna "I just hope this SEED of mine would be able to get him back to his senses" she added

_**I guess she really should know about the SEED**_ thought Kira

"I'm guessing you want to know more about the SEED, right?" asked Kira

"Yes, I do" replied Luna

"Get a rest for now, we'll take you to Morgenroete later" said Cagalli, which Luna agreed with a nod

"We'll be leaving for now, so we'll see you later? About 5 in the afternoon?" said Kira

"Sure, we'll be waiting in the lounge" replied Meyrin

* * *

CE 73

Morgenroete Labs, ORB Industrial District: 0730 Hours

* * *

Erica Simmons, chief engineer of Morgenroete Labs, was sitting in her desk, adding more data to the labs' current mobile suit development project. The ORB Union was currently developing new mobile suit prototypes based on the battle data of their Astray frames projects and Morgenroete was the company assigned to the project. Adding to the Morgenroete's hectic schedule was the rapidly incoming repairs of damaged Murasame and Astray units that came from the battle not too long ago.

Erica was browsing to the battle data comparisons of the Astray Red Frame and Astray Blue Frame when her phone rang. She then pressed the answer button on her wireless earpiece

"Miss Simmons, it's Cagalli" greeted Cagalli

"Oh, Miss Cagalli, how may I help you?" asked Erica

"Well, we're planning to drop by there later with the two girls and they said that they wanted to know more about the SEED factor" said Cagalli

"The SEED factor, huh" said Erica "Let me guess, someone had used it for the first time and wondered about the special ability, am I right" she asked

"Yes, and we couldn't think of anyone else who knows more about that than you" replied Cagalli

Erica let out a sigh of relief, doing things like this was what she considered recreational and stress – relieving "Well I'd be happy to tell them about it but the Morgenroete's schedule won't make me free until about 5 in the afternoon" she said "I hope you understand that there many repairs to make on the mobile suits and in your Akatsuki" she added

"That's just fine" said Cagalli "I understand, we'll be there by that time anyway" she added

"So will we see you later then, Miss Cagalli?" asked Erica

"Yes, thank you very much" said Cagalli before cutting off the call

The SEED factor, Erica Simmons is one of the famous adherents of the theories surrounding that ability along with Reverend Malchio. She underwent the research about the SEED after she met Kira Yamato, the only successful product of the _"Ultimate Coordinator"_ project and has since expanded her research, discovering two possibilities about how Kira, Athrun, Cagalli and Lacus can use their SEED.

* * *

CE 73

Minerva, Gibraltar Base: 1300 Hours

* * *

Shinn Asuka still couldn't believe what had happened the previous battle, Lunamaria and Athrun truly became his enemies, yet he still can't see them as that. He's in his room, holding his head with his hands trying to shake off the memory of the battle.

_**Damn it! Damn it! Why? Why are they doing this!? Luna....Athrun....why do we have to fight each other!!!**_ he thought

Rey Za Burrel then entered their room, bringing a laptop with him. He then notices Shinn's very confused expression.

"Shinn? Is something bothering you?" he kindly asks, but gets no response "I see, the previous battle must have been very shocking for you" he added

Rey then opened his laptop and placed it in Shinn's bed, when Shinn looked to see what was on display, he saw the data taken from all four mobile suits he encountered. Rey then flashed the data on the Freedom

"ZGMF-X20A Strike Freedom, an upgraded version of the Freedom. Stolen from the ZAFT Armory a few days after the Armory One incident. It is still believed that the remnants of the Clyne Faction had stolen it" said Rey before flashing the data of the Justice

"ZGMF-X19A Infinite Justice, like the Strike Freedom, this mobile suit is an upgraded version of it's predecessor, the Justice, and was also stolen on the same day as the Strike Freedom. Only other known fact is that this unit is piloted by Athrun Zala" he added, the next thing he flashed was the Akatsuki

"ORB-01 Akatsuki, no details yet on the armaments and specifications of the mobile suit aside from the anti – beam coating on it's armor." Shinn was really paying attention to the screen up to that point, finally, Rey flashed the Amethyst

"ZGMF-X56S Impulse Epsilon, UniSilhouette" Rey began "The base body is the same as your previous Impulse, the only difference is that the Silhouette wasn't developed by ZAFT, but by the Clyne Faction, and that the machine uses the same power source as the Freedom and the Justice, a Nuclear Reactor with N-Jammer Cancellers" he said

"What!? But I thought the treaty forbid use of N-Jammers!?" asked Shinn, shocked to hear the deadly potential that the mobile suits held

"Yes, but due to the outbreak of the second war, those rules were cast aside" replied Rey

"Damn LOGOS!" said Shinn "If it weren't for them, then this war would have never began!" he added

"Is that really your reason for cursing them, Shinn?" asked Rey

"Wha-what are you saying?" said Shinn

"It's pointless to fight if you won't stay true to yourself" said Rey "So Shinn, don't hesitate to tell me what you're thinking. What you want to do now that Athrun and Lunamaria have become our enemies" he added

"I don't know, Rey" said Shinn "Sure, Luna and Athrun fought us in ORB but I think that doesn't make them our enemies" he added

"Why not?" asked Rey "When ORB was clearly hiding Djibril within their territory. It is Djibril, Shinn, the leader of LOGOS. What else do you want to see to convince you that they are indeed our enemies!?" he added

"That's....because" stuttered Shinn "Lunamaria is.....I"

"Love her?" continued Rey, much to Shinn's surprise "Shinn, personal feelings have no place on the battlefield, if a friend you fire your guns with turns to the enemy, then you would surely point guns at each other in time" he said "It would only hurt you more if you keep thinking about Lunamaria" he added

"But what should I do, Rey!?" angrily asked Shinn, out of all the things he could do, being forced to fight Lunamaria was the last thing he wanted to

"If you really don't want to hurt her" began Rey "Then I suggest you find someway to avoid killing her the next time we meet, 'cause I'm sure that she would even be the first to cross swords with you" he said

_**Avoid killing her? But I would still hurt her!**_ Thought Shinn **_What should I do? Should I also defect to ORB? But that would mean betraying my friends, and I'm not a traitor like Athrun

* * *

_**

CE 73

Archangel, Onogoro Island Docks: 1600 Hours

* * *

Lunamaria and Meyrin were in their room reading some books when Cagalli and Kira entered the room

"Oh, Cagalli, Kira" said Meyrin as she saw the two enter the room

"Are we going already?" asked Luna as she took off her reading glasses

"Yes, but before that, I would want to give you two something first" replied Cagalli, Kira then placed a uniform on each of the girls' beds

"ORB Uniforms?" asked Luna

"Yes, since you two helped us in defending ORB and for helping Athrun escape, I thought it would be nice to enlist you both in the ORB Military" said Cagalli

"Besides, I'm sure we're already wanted for desertion in the ZAFT Military so it's just right" said Athrun as he entered the room in his ORB Captain uniform

"Athrun, I see you're really playing the part of being a Captain" said Kira

"Well, you're no different from me, Admiral" said Athrun

"Kira is an Admiral in the ORB Military?" asked Luna

"Yes, though he really doesn't take it seriously" said Cagalli "In speaking of which, Lunamaria is enlisted as a Commander while Meyrin is enlisted as an Ensign"

_**Wow, maybe that's too much, suddenly going towards Commander**_ said Luna

_**Well, we're certainly higher than our old ranks**_ said Meyrin

Again the silent exchange of looks between Luna and Meyrin made Cagalli, Kira and Athrun about what is it they're actually doing.

_**I got a feeling there's more than meets the eye with these two**_ thought Athrun

"Well, Miss Simmons said that Morgenroete won't be free until 5 so we still got an hour" said Cagalli "How about you two change into those uniforms and we'll see how you look" she added

"I agree" said Athrun

After Meyrin and Luna got changed into their new ORB uniforms, they presented themselves to the three

"I can't believe it's nice to see you without your pink skirt on" said Athrun, noticing that Lunamaria wasn't wearing her trademark pink skirt

"Well, white doesn't really blend in with pink so I just left it" said Luna

"Well, now you two look beautiful and ready, let's go" said Kira

The four then went off the Archangel and walked from the docks to the Morgenroete labs, on the way seeing many Astray and Murasame units being transported for repairs. Finally, the reached the Morgenroete labs and saw that Erica was waiting for them

"Miss Cagalli, how nice to see you're alright" she said "You must still be worried, I guess, recovery after such a battle isn't easy" she added

"I'm alright, Miss Simmons, thanks for your concern" said Cagalli "Oh, I believe this is the first time you've met Lunamaria and Meyrin Hawke, right?" she asked

"Yes, but I've heard stories from Master Kira" replied Erica, then offering a hand to the two girls "It's a pleasure to meet you, I'm Erica Simmons, the chief engineer of Morgenroete" she said

The two then shook hands with Erica "Same here, Miss Simmons" said Luna

"Come inside now, I have something to show you two" Erica then led the four to her room, where a shelf of books related to mobile suit development stood out "Please, have a seat" Erica offered them a seat in her large sofa

"So I hear you two want to know about the SEED?" she asked after sitting on the couch in front of them

"Yes, we've heard from Miss Cagalli that you were the best person to ask about it" replied Meyrin

"Well, I don't have too much to tell about the SEED" said Erica "But I'll be glad to help you" she added

"Superior Evolutionary Element Destined factor, or SEED as we call it, is a person's ability to increase spatial awareness and reach peak physical ability for period of time. Though it is still a theory, many people such as myself consider it as something special, for the continuous research I've conducted has yielded me many possibilities as to the existence of SEED within humans. Back then when Master Kira here had first discovered his SEED, it was believed that only Coordinators possessed this ability. This theory was backed up with the next confirmed occurrences of SEED; those within Master Athrun and Miss Lacus" said Erica "The only known way of determining SEED activation within others is the dilating of the pupils and the dominating color of the iris"

"Miss Lacus possesses the SEED? Interesting" said Luna

"But then the theory was weakened, as the next occurrence was the most surprising and perhaps, the most intriguing yet" continued Erica

"Who was it?" asked Meyrin

"Miss Cagalli, after the deaths of the three Astray pilots who were her friends during the Battle of Jachin Due, suddenly activated her SEED abilities, despite being a Natural" replied Erica "It was then that we discontinued the possession of SEED only present in Coordinators, and then focused on how the SEED grows and activates within someone" she added

"The desire to protect.....or destroy" muttered Luna as she remembered what Athrun had told her earlier in the day

"Those were what we thought possible factors in SEED activation" said Erica, hearing Luna's soft spoken words

"So do those methods affect what kind of ability a person gains in SEED?" asked Luna

"We have theoretical explanation for these methods" began Erica "For instance, when one person possess strong desire to protect someone, their SEED abilities change their spatial awareness drastically, making it easy for pilots to avoid rapid enemy attacks, a good example of that is Master Athrun, during the Battle of Jachin Due, where he was able to shoot down all nuclear missiles of the EAF" she said "While when a person possess strong desire to destroy or kill an enemy, their SEED ability improve their reflexes, making a pilot maneuver his mobile suit like it was just an extension of his body, a perfect example of that is your friend, Shinn Asuka, when he defeated the Freedom" she finished

"I see" said Luna

"One last thing, Miss Simmons, can a person trigger their SEED at will?" asked Meyrin

"It depends on how long they have been using their SEED" replied Erica "The only people who have full control of their SEED is Master Athrun and Master Kira" she added

_**So, Shinn's anger takes control of him when he uses his SEED**_ said Luna

_**That's about right, his strong desire to eliminate the Freedom was perhaps the reason**_ said Meyrin

"In your case, Miss Lunamaria" began Erica "We believe that your SEED trigger was the desire to protect someone, perhaps, your sister Meyrin" she said

"Maybe so, Miss Simmons" said Lunamaria "But I can't ignore the fact that I may have wanted to kill Shinn" she added

"The heart is the most powerful weapon, and the most powerful shield" said Athrun "It holds the person's true desires, and it determines your SEED factor" he added

"Huh?" wondered Luna

"You said you may have desired to kill Shinn, but I know your heart says otherwise" replied Athrun "So there's no need to think about it too much, for I know you won't do anything to hurt him, and I know you know it deep within you" he added

"Thank you, Athrun" said Luna

_**Yet another step in discovering the true nature of the SEED has been taken, and I hope that these children can lead the world to it's natural character**_ thought Erica

* * *

**Finally, it took me some time to finally decide on the idea of this chapter so sorry to those who browsed through FF eveyday waiting for an update. I just hope everybody enjoyed it and please feel free to review!**


	7. Day Off

**Chapter 7: Day Off

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**

CE 73

Archangel, Onogoro Island Docks: 0600 Hours

* * *

After their trip to Morgenroete the previous day, Cagalli and the others decide to take a little day off and go out to the ORB commercial district the next day.

"Meyrin, wake up!" said Luna as she shakes her sister to get her to wake up

"Ugh" groaned Meyrin as she is unwillingly disturbed in her sleep "What is it, sis?" she annoyingly asked

"Look, we're gonna go to the commercial district today, remember? And we only have an hour left so get up!" replied Luna

"Oh, yeah, I forgot!" said Meyrin as she literally jumped off from bed and headed for the showers, with Luna following later

The two took a very refreshing shower and then got dressed up for their 'day off'. The two then went off the ship and headed for the docks, where they agreed to meet upon. After a short walk towards the docks, the two find Kira, Lacus, Cagalli and Athrun near the entrance.

"Hey look, it's the twins!" said Kira as he noticed the two walking towards them

"Yeah, and they're awfully late, too" said Athrun, looking at his wristwatch

"That's because we're too excited" said Cagalli "Remember that we agreed to meet here at 7? And that we all got here at 6:30, roughly half an hour early!?" she added

"I guess you're right" said Athrun

Finally, Luna and Meyrin reach the others

"Are we late?" asked Luna

"No, in fact you're just in time" said Lacus

"I thought you guys said 7?" asked Meyrin "But why does it look like you've been waiting for a while?" she added

"That's because we got a little excited and got here by 6:30" said Kira

"Now that we're all here, let's get going" said Cagalli

"Okay, so who do you girls wanna ride with?" asked Athrun, referring to the cars that he and Kira brought with them

_**Who should we go with, sis?**_ Asked Meyrin

_**I don't know about you but I'm definitely going with Athrun**_ replied Luna

_**Why do you always have to go where I go?**_ Said Meyrin

"We're going with you, Athrun" said Luna

"Okay then, hop in" said Athrun as he got inside his convertible and started the engine

"Let's go!" said Kira as he got in his car as well and headed off first

* * *

CE 73

ORB Commercial District: 0630 Hours

* * *

As they arrived at the ORB Commercial District, Cagalli started looking for places they could spend the day at. Cagalli then pointed Kira to one of the malls in the district, Kira, who was leading the cars, then headed towards the mall.

_**The mall? Cagalli sure hasn't changed**_ thought Athrun

_**Wow! I didn't think places like these exist!**_ Said Meyrin, surprised by the humongous size of the malls around the ORB district

_**Well, if you haven't guessed it, the ORB Union is famous for it's large commercial district**_said Lunamaria

_**Again they're talking without words? I really gotta ask them about it**_ thought Athrun, noticing the sisters' exchanging looks through the rearview mirror

Finally they park their cars inside the mall and head inside. They entered the elevator and pressed '3', heading for the third floor.

The mall was obviously large from the outside but the size appears to double once inside the mall. It nearly had every known jewelry and clothing store inside, and that's just the third floor

"Alright, now that we're here, where are we going first?" asked Kira, looking around for something to draw interest

"We really didn't have the time to get out here so why don't we just go around first and maybe we'll find something interesting" replied Cagalli

"I agree" added Lacus

"I hope you two don't feel too out of place" said Athrun to both Luna and Meyrin

"Don't worry, we're just looking around" said Meyrin

"Yeah, and what reason is there for us to feel out of place?" added Luna

_**Hmm....I guess these two have already gotten along with the others**_ thought Athrun

"I see, well come on" he said

They walked around the mall when the girls decided to enter a clothing store, where the boys just waited outside for it would seem embarrassing for them to look around in a female clothing store.

"It's nice that we can get together in a place like this again, don't you think?" asked Kira as he and Athrun were leaning on the metal railings in the third floor

"Yeah, I never imagined that this day would come sooner" replied Athrun, turning around from the clothing store and looked down at the ground floor "I never even imagined that this place was under attack two days ago, just look at those people below, it's like they're not privy to the war that's currently going on" he added

"That's because of neutrality" said Kira

"Neutrality?" asked Athrun

"The thought that the nation of ORB is neutral and that it doesn't meddle with the business of others is what keeps them confident of peace" replied Kira "You might ask why they think of nothing about the previous attack, that's because ORB made a cover up story of a rebel faction of ZAFT trying to invade them" he added

"Keep everything under wraps, I see" said Athrun "Maybe that's a good way to prevent widespread panic" he added

"Maybe" repeated Kira "But it doesn't mean that everyone would think of it that way, right?" he asked

"Yeah, sooner or later ORB will surely join in the war like it did before" replied Athrun "And there's no way for them to deny that" he added

After 15 minutes of waiting, the girls finally came out of the clothing store, bringing one plastic bag each.

"It seems that they've done some shopping" said Kira

"Yeah, well that's them" added Athrun

"Have you guys been waiting long?" asked Luna

"No, we've been just talking about some things" replied Athrun

"Ah, ok" said Meyrin

"Well, we're done here, shall we go on?" asked Lacus

"Ok, to the music shop!" said Cagalli

"She seems more enthusiastic here than when she's back in the ship" said Athrun

"Well, it's the first time she's been out here ever since the war started" said Lacus

"Is that so? Then I guess it's just right" said Athrun

The guys then walked inside the music shop, where all sorts of records are found, be it new – school or old – school. As luck may have it, Meer Campbell's live performance of Emotion was playing on the wide screen.

"Well, well, looks like the PLANTS' Lacus also sells here in ORB" said Kira

"No surprise, Meer's performances are also broadcasted here in Earth" said Athrun

_**So the Lacus in PLANTS is really fake**_ said Meyrin

_**Yeah, guess Athrun never wanted to give away the truth when we were still in the Minerva**_ said Luna

After the video was finished, the guys split up and looked around the shop to find something of their interests. Lacus, Meyrin and Luna went to the free listening stations while Cagalli, Kira and Athrun went to look in the music CDs

30 minutes later, the guys left the music store, with the boys getting to buy this time. Being the kids that they still were, the guys then went to the arcade to kill some time. The arcade was huge, having all sorts of games in it, be it racing, shooting, beat em up and sports

"Well, this is gonna be fun" said Athrun as he looked around trying to find something he would be interested in

"I agree, why don't we try looking around for a bit" said Kira. The guys then walked around the arcade when something caught the boys' eyes. A racing game named _'Initial D Stage 4'_

"I never tried racing you in real life, wanna try this one?" asked Athrun

"Yeah, good idea" replied Kira

The two got into the machines as the girls watched behind them. Kira picked a blue RX-7 FD while Athrun picked a red Skyline GT-R R34. They battled it out in Irohazaka as the girls cheered behind them. In the end, Athrun pulls of a sly victory with an advantage of just 1m

"Well, that was entertaining" said Kira as he got off the machine

"Yeah, that was fun, I beat you there huh" said Athrun, waiting for Kira to demand a rematch

"Well, I guess I can get back at you sometime else" said Kira

"You two aren't the only ones who'll have fun" said Luna as she pointed to a DDR X2 machine across the arcade

"Well, well, something I can throw you down at, sis" bragged Meyrin as she saw the DDR machine

"The last win was a fluke, Meyrin, that proved nothing" said Luna

"Let's do it!" shouted Meyrin as she ran towards the DDR machine, with Luna following shortly

"Now I see where these two get along well" said Athrun, noticing the sisters' sudden energy coming out

"Well, let's see what they can do" said Kira

_**By the way he said that, I'm seeing another challenge **_thought Athrun

"Wait, you're not thinking what I'm thinking aren't you?" he asked

"Yeah, how about I settle the score here?" said Kira

"Not a bad idea, let's go!" said Athrun as he, Kira, Lacus and Cagalli went to the DDR machine to watch Luna and Meyrin

While on the floor, Luna and Meyrin played Brilliant 2U by Naoki on Hard difficulty. Even before the song started, it was already obvious that the two had a very serious point of view on the game. Once the song started playing, their moves shocked Kira, Athrun, Cagalli and Lacus.

Playing freestyle, their moves were similar to Korea's A-Team, one of the best DDR players in the world. At the bridge of the song, they switched places without missing a step, even going around the rails and back and still kept the combo going.

The song finished and the scores were tallied, the game was close but Meyrin came out as the victor.

"Aww....bad beat, I lost" said Luna

"Finally! After three games of losing I finally did it!" exclaimed Meyrin, obviously happy about the results

"Now that you girls had fun, time for us to join in" said Cagalli as she and Lacus stood next in the machines

They stayed there for about half an hour more, switching pairs in the game, Meyrin and Luna, Cagalli and Lacus and Kira and Athrun. After they have played, they were obviously exhausted and wanted to leave the arcade to resist the temptation of playing again.

"Now that we're out in the open again, why don't we all eat, it's already past 11" suggested Athrun

"Great idea, I'm starving" said Kira

"Not bad, let's go" said Cagalli

The group then went to the nearest restaurant they can find to finally get the chance to sit and relax themselves a bit after their relentless antics in DDR. After ordering their meal, Athrun finally took the chance to ask the Hawke's the question that's been bugging his and the others' minds since they escaped from ZAFT.

"Now that we're all here, I guess I can already ask you this, Meyrin and Luna" he began, getting a surprised look from the two "You know, we've noticed the strange communication you two have had with us since we got here. That you two seem to understand each other with just a simple exchange of looks" he continued "I know it's stupid to ask you this since you've been with each other your whole life, but, are you two communicating with telepathy?" he finished

Meyrin and Luna then gave out a sigh, one of disbelief

"I guess there's no use hiding it now that you saw through us" said Luna

"So that means you two really are...." a surprised Kira said

"Yes, we possess telepathy" confirmed Meyrin "We've had this since the incident that killed our parents, and until now we have yet to find out if this was a natural occurrence or did something happen to us, that's why we haven't told anyone about it" she continued

"But who would've thought that you guys saw right through us" said Luna

"It was just a natural observation to begin with that turned out to be larger that we had ever expected" said Lacus

"So why did you keep it a secret?" asked Cagalli "I mean, you were with ZAFT, right? And I think it was just weird that you two kept it just because you don't know everything behind it" she added

"Originally, we never intended to keep it a secret" began Meyrin "It was just when we graduated from the academy that Luna told me to keep it from anyone except the two of us" she continued

"I was scared, for me and for Meyrin" said Luna "I was scared that if ever ZAFT found out about this, that they would use us for some experiment to develop weapons. I didn't want that to happen, so I kept acting cool, like I had no doubts about ZAFT, just to not let them have any ideas" she added

"That's why you were so eager to help me escape" said Athrun

"Yeah, since the day I was ordered by the captain to keep tabs on you when you met with Cagalli and Kira, my faith in ZAFT slowly faded. It disappeared just like that when you told us you were planning to escape, and we saw that if we went with you, we would feel safer" said Luna

"Don't worry, this will be just between all of us here" said Athrun "Right guys?" he asked

"Yeah, don't worry" said Kira

"Your secret's safe" said Cagalli

"No one else will find out about it" said Lacus

"Thank you, everyone" said Luna

* * *

**Finally, the secret has been revealed!!!!!**

**This was a chapter that was based on my own experiences with my friends, I really have this habit of relating my fanfics with my life for sometime, though this usually happens when the theme of the chapter or the story itself is focused on 'friendship'**

**To everyone who was expecting this update way back, I'm really REALLY sorry, school's gotten to me and we're still busy for the music video project we have so guys, I really can't promise an update for next week, try checking in the next two weeks, maybe I'll have it up by that time.**

**Still, I hope everyone enjoyed and please review, I really need to know your reactions as to my late update. I'm sorry again**


	8. Hymn of Fates

**Chapter 8: The Hymn of Fates

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**

C.E. 73

Minerva, ZAFT Headquarters, Gibraltar: 0800 Hours

* * *

After analysis of the battle data gathered from ZAFT's invasion of ORB had begun, Shinn Asuka and Rey Za Burrel can't help but feel restless, knowing that another formidable enemy has entered the scene, none other than their former comrade and close friend, Lunamaria Hawke and her Impulse.

"Aarrgh....when will they get the results out!?" groaned Shinn as he held his head with his hands, squeezing his hair yet

"Relax, Shinn" said Rey, who was strutting back & forth endlessly across the pilot's lounge, hiding his restlessness from his distraught friend "I'm sure they'll release it not later than this afternoon" he added, attempting to make Shinn stop his tantrums that make him look like a complete idiot

"How pretty of you to say that, Rey" replied Shinn as he slightly raised his head with a grin on his face "Even though we feel the same way" he added, noting that he had figured out Rey's restlessness as well

"Well, at least I don't look like an idiot when somebody walks by us" said Rey, pointing out his dislike and annoyance for Shinn's gestures

"Ah, forget it!" said Shinn, admitting defeat in their argument "We have all the time to kill, right?" he asked

"Well yeah" replied Rey, looking surprised at Shinn's sudden statement "Tell me, Shinn, what are you planning to do?" he asked

Shinn then gave off a sly girn "What else, but study how to shoot down that Impulse" he said, looking straight at Rey, hinting that he needs his help in that

Rey just gave off a sigh "Are you seriously telling me you want to study how to defeat the Impulse like what you did before with the Freedom?" he asked, confirming his hunches

"Lunamaria's our enemy now, right? So I see no problem for me in doing so" replied Shinn, with the mixed look in his eyes, a look of both hatred and despair

_So I see he's still reluctant to fight her, I guess that's fine, good thing is were thinking of the same thing _thought Rey, hinting that he too is reluctant to fight Lunamaria

"I can see in your eyes, you're still not ready" he said, giving off a straight look at Shinn

Shinn just lets out a sigh "I don't know, Rey, I can never imagine myself crossing swords with her like that again!" he said "I'm just not ready to face the truth yet, I still can't accept the fact that she is our enemy!" he added, again returning to his annoying gestures

"You're not the only one, Shinn" Rey said softly, hoping that Shinn didn't hear

"What?" asked Shinn "Did I just hear you right, Rey?" he added

"Yes, for I too cannot bear the truth that Lunamaria has become our enemy" admitted Rey "Of all the people in the world to become foes, why her!?" he said in a very furious tone that shocked even Shinn

_Oh my, Rey......I didn't know that _thought Shinn, unable to believe what he had just seen. Out of all people to feel sad for Lunamaria's defection, he never thought Rey would be more affected

"I guess we're the same then" said Shinn "But I'm still wondering what would happen if we were to meet them again" he added, revealing what was running through his mind all this time

"You tell me" began Rey "I'm also thinking about that, what would we do? Would we fight her and may even kill her in the process? Or would we do the same thing she and Athrun had done, defect to the enemy and be labeled as traitors in our homes?" he said "These choices are what would certainly face us in the future, for all we know is that they clearly oppose ZAFT, and that they would do anything to stop Chairman from reaching his ambition" he finished

_Is there really no other way for us to get her back without hurting each other? _Shinn thought

"I guess we really need to choose between one thing or the other" he said

"Yes, and it's that choice that will decide not only the fate of the three of us, but also the outcome of this whole war" added Rey "I know it's hard, to be labeled as a traitor or to be with the friends we care for" he finished

"No, I have a feeling we'll come up with something sooner or later" rebutted Shinn, standing up and then looking outside the window "After all, there's nothing we can't overcome, right Rey?" he added, looking back at his friend with a smile on his face

"Yeah, I guess you're right" said Rey

* * *

CE 73

Chairman's Office, PLANTS: 1200 Hours

* * *

"Could you put me on the line with the engineers back at Gibraltar" ZAFT Chairman Gilbert Durandall requested his secretary

"Yes, sir, just a moment" replied his secretary, who immediately patched connections with the ZAFT Headquarters at Gibraltar

Then the chief mechanic of the Gibraltar base appeared in Durandall's monitor

"Yes, Mr. Chairman?" asked the chief

"I just wanted to check on the work I've requested for the Destiny and the Legend" said Durandall "How is it going?" he asked

"As of the moment, the increased mirage colloid emissions for the X42S thrusters have been completed. 150% more emissions as you requested, sir" replied the chief "For the higher energy consumption it would need, we've installed a second Hyper Capacitor, giving it a doubled running tme compared to the previous settings" he added

"I see" said Durandall, with a slight grin on his face "What about the Legend?" he asked

"We are still in the process of creating slots for the extra 5 DRAGOON units to be installed, sir" the chief replied "But the Advanced Mirage Colloid Cloak system has already been integrated within the triple six's operating system" he continued

"Is that so? How long can the cloak remain active with the Legend's current specifications?" Durandall asked again

"Since the DRAGOON system consumes only 45% of the power if used for 1000 shots, the cloak can remain active continuously for about 1 hour, with the ability to use the beam rifle, beam saber and the DRAGOONS even if cloaked" replied the chief

"Very good, just tell me when you get finished with the DRAGOON extras" said Durandall "I cannot thank you enough for all the help you've given us" he added before cutting off communications with the Gibraltar headquarters

* * *

CE 73

Archangel, Morgenroete Labs, ORB

* * *

The pilots of the Archangel, gathered in the pilots lounge after they had watched the controversial broadcast of Cagalli, being interrupted by Meer, and then getting blown by Lacus who went with Cagalli to reveal the true identity of Meer.

"Well, that was entertaining" said Athrun

"Yeah, I didn't except Lacus to come out like that" said Luna "That fake Lacus Clyne got blown away like hell!" she added

"That's sure to send a message to the PLANTS" said Mwu

"Yeah, the chairman must be really pissed off at this, his name is also gonna be put on the blazing fray, after all" added Athrun

"Not to mention that Meer flipped out live" said Kira

"Yeah, that will send the whole thing across the world, turning ZAFT's relations with different nations upside down" commented Athrun

"I think so too, after all, Lacus Clyne is the world's peace advocate during the end of the previous war, having someone else use her name and her personage would indeed suffer great defamation" said Luna "Even if it's ZAFT Supreme Chairman Gilbert Durandall" she added

Athrun then looked towards Luna with a concerned look

"Lunamaria, are you really sure you want to do this?" he asked

"What do you mean?" she asked back "There's nothing else I can do, except to fight to end this war" she said

"I know, but you must keep in mind that you will have to confront them again on the way" said Athrun, referring to Shinn, Rey and the Minerva

"I know that" said Luna in a sad tone "It's the mere fact that I know it that makes me want to end this thing quickly, so I can be with them again" she added

_Her naivety astonishes me, but mentioning it might make her lose sight of what to fight for, then again, the fact that she doesn't think about fighting them would make it harder for her when it does happen_ thought Kira

"It's not that easy, you know" said Mwu "You can't win the war without bringing down the enemy's ace, and the Minerva and those two boys are currently ZAFT's ace" he added

"But ZAFT still isn't our enemy right?" said Luna "There's still LOGOS to take care of, and maybe the war will end once they're gone" she added

_It's just wishful thinking, but there's no way to make it happen if I don't believe in it_ thought Luna

"You've got a point" said Athrun "But still, that doesn't remove the fact that ORB and ZAFT aren't on good terms with one another" he added

"In that case, I'll face them myself" said Luna "If I can't get them to come to our side, then I have no choice but to fight, right?" she asked

_Luna, what are you really thinking? You say you have no choice but to fight them, but deep inside, I feel you really don't want to _thought Athrun

* * *

CE 73

Minerva, ZAFT Headquarters, Gibraltar: 1500 Hours

* * *

"Shinn Asuka and Rey Za Burrel are to head to the engineering bay immediately" Abby Windsor read the order that came from HQ Central Command

"It must be about their mobile suits" said Arthur Trine

"Probably, ok, Abby, call Shinn and Rey and tell them about the order" said Captain Talia Gladys

"Yes, ma'am" said Abby

In the pilots lounge, the communications device beeped, Rey went to answer it

"Za Burrel here" he said

"Rey, Shinn, Central Command has ordered both of you to head to the engineering bay, we think it's about your two units" said Abby

"Ok, we'll be going then" replied Rey before cutting off communications

"Shinn, we've been ordered to head to the engineering bay now" he said to his friend

"Maybe they're already finished working on the Destiny and the Legend?" replied Shinn

"The captain thinks so too, we gotta get there to find out anyway" said Rey

"Alright, let's go" agreed Shinn

The two then headed to the Minerva's hangar, where Rey's car had been parked. The two got in and drove off the ship and towards the engineering bay, which was on the center of the Gibraltar base, a half an hour trip from the docks near the shore.

Once they arrived in the close hangars of the engineering bay, they saw that the chief engineer was waiting for them outside. They parked the car in front of the hangar and got off.

"Hey, you two, got some good rest?" asked the chief

"Yes, sir" replied Rey

"We're still wondering why you called us here, chief" said Shinn

"Ohay, I won't make you boys wait any longer" began the chief, he then pressed a button beside the small gate of the hangar, making the large shutters raise slowly, revealing the two mobile suits lying down on an MS container bed "Here are your upgraded machines" he said

They then went inside the hangar, with Shinn and Rey observing their upgraded mobile suits, while the chief gets their mobile suit charts to let them find out what has been changed and added to their mobile suits.

After the chief got the charts from the working table on the far side of the hangar, he walked towards the two and gave it to them.

"Wow, a lot has been changed in the Destiny, huh?" said Shinn, as he immediately noticed the new parts listed in the chart

"Same here in the Legend" commented Rey, also noticing the new parts in his chart

"For the Destiny, we've decided to increase the Mirage Colloid emissions in the thrusters for a faster flight and for increased visual illusion effect. Because of the obvious higher energy consumption, we've also decided to add a second Hyper Capacitor to the power supply to compensate for the new thrusters" said the chief

"Thanks, chief, this will surely make the Destroys child's play" commented Shinn

_I just can't imagine myself using this against ZAFT, it's powerful, no, too powerful_ he thought

"For the Legend, we've also decided to increase the DRAGOON units from 11 to 16 and we've also calibrated the targeting system to allow more possible attack angles with it. Another feature we added to the Legend is the Advanced Mirage Colloid Cloak system, allowing a stealth system for the Legend, despite it's size" said the chief

"But will using that system render the Legend unable to attack? The system is the same as the one used in the GAT – X207 Blitz, am I right?" asked Rey

"Almost, it is as you say, the system functions the same as the one used in the Blitz, but we've upgraded that system in the Legend, allowing you to use all your weaponry while cloaked, that includes the DRAGOONS, so you can really take the enemy by surprise" replied the chief "But there is a downside, once you use all 16 units of the DRAGOON while cloaked, they will surface and would render the cloak useless as you will appear on enemy radar again" he added

"I see, that's fine, thank you for everything, chief" said Rey

_What will it look like if I use this to fight ZAFT? This thing has exceeded the limits of power_ thought Rey

"Are you boys happy with these machines?" asked the chief

"Absolutely, I didn't really expect the machines to have such an upgrade" said Rey

"Well then, you boys better get back to your ship, after all, I've arranged for my boys to transport this to your ship the day after tomorrow since we still need to remap the whole OS to adapt to the new armaments" said the chief

"Thank you very much, sir" said Shinn

The two then got back to the car and drove back to the Minerva, on the way back, Rey is getting close to come to his decision on what to do with Lunamaria and the Archangel.

_We have only one opponent left, LOGOS, and why would Gil have our machines geared up for a war against the world? I believe that it is because he sees a war against the world, against ORB, for they will surely get in the way of his plans after LOGOS is annihilated. Why did I realize this just now? I have been thinking like him for a long time, even going as far as insinuating Shinn's fury against Lunamaria in the invasion of ORB, labeling her a traitor in his eyes, but now, why is it that I'm beginning to lose faith in what he said was to be a swift end to this war, a swift way to attain peace? Why is it that I feel that peace wouldn't be attained without using massive force? Without hurting her? If the only other way to resolve to a quick ceasefire is to join them, then I will!

* * *

_

**Again another chapter is finished after so long! I'm really sorry for this guys, clearance week hit us hard in school and with it came readers block that nearly forced me to abandon this story. Now that we've conquered clearance and are now heading to senior year in high school, I finally had the time and mindset to continue the story.**

**I hope you guys enjoyed the update you dearly waited for, and please review, cause I really need your reaction so I can make the next chapter with my readers' wants in mind.**


	9. True Friends, True Allies

**Chapter 9: True Friends, True Allies

* * *

**

CE 73

Minerva, ZAFT Headquarters, Gibraltar: 1800 Hours

* * *

After thinking his plans through the rest of the day, Rey Za Burrel finally comes up with a decision. For that reason, he tells it to his best friend Shinn Asuka, hoping that he would find an ally within him.

"Shinn" Rey called out to his friend who was talking with Vino, one of the Minerva's mechanics and their friend, after he had finished eating.

"What is it, Rey?" Shinn asked, looking at his friend who was standing near the entrance of the mess hall

"We need to talk" said Rey, with his usual serious look that tells Shinn that Rey wants to talk to him about something serious

"Hold on" said Shinn, asking for Rey to wait a moment as he would excuse himself from the crew "Can we talk later, guys? I think Rey wants us to talk in private" he said

"It's ok, we'll just be down the hangar" said Vino "Later then" he added as Shinn went with Rey outside the mess hall

"So what is it you want to talk about now?" asked Shinn as he and Rey arrived in their shared room

"I finally decided on something" replied Rey as he pressed the key code to the door

_How fast? I bet he was thinking about it ever since we left the engineering bay_ thought Shinn, the door then slid open and the two of them went in

Rey sat in front of his computer and started to reveal something on screen. As Shinn observed what it was, he made out a map of a region with the Red Sea and the ORB Union. He then had a hunch of what Rey was to tell him

_Don't tell me this guy wants to defect as well!?_ He thought

"I know you know what this is, Shinn" said Rey, staring straight at the monitor, typing something in the program "This is the map of the ORB Union's territorial region" he added

"Rey, just tell me what the hell are you planning?" Shinn couldn't bear to wait anymore about what his friend was about to say

"I think you might have guessed it Shinn" replied Rey, turning his chair around and facing his friend who was now standing in front of him "Yes, I'm planning to defect to the Archangel" he plainly said

Shinn was shocked, for he didn't know what to make out of what his friend had just heard

"Co-could you s-say that again?" Shinn, out of utter shock, wanted to confirm if he heard right

"I want to defect Shinn, I want to follow Lunamaria" repeated Rey

"But why Rey!?" Shinn, in an outburst of rage on the thought of Rey being labeled a traitor, asked "I thought you were loyal to the Chairman!?" he added

"I thought I was, Shinn" said Rey, which made Shinn quiet down a bit "It was just when I thought about what I was fighting for, and who I was fighting against, that made me realize that this war would drag on if ZAFT continues on in the path it is on now" he added

"The path ZAFT is on!?" Shinn furiously asked "The path we're on now is the path of LOGOS' destruction! We don't need to face them now, do we? So why would you want to leave!?" he added

"You said so yourself right? That even after LOGOS is annihilated, ORB will continue to oppose the PLANTS, and would result in more conflict" replied Rey "So what if the whole PLANTS council aren't the ones calling the shots?" he added

"What are you saying, Rey?" asked Shinn

"Gil and I talked about it when Athrun escaped, the PLANTS council was just something to direct the people's attention away from Gil, for the truth is, the council was only like a foreign affairs department, signing peace treaties whenever the chairman feels tired of war" Rey replied "He knew this would happen, LOGOS was nothing in his eyes, his real target from the very beginning was ORB and Lacus Clyne, the last and strongest thorn in his plan's side" he added

"No way" Shinn was shocked of what he had just heard, everything he was fighting for was just to make way for a war with Lacus Clyne and ORB

"Because of that fact, he had Athrun Zala outgrow his usefulness to him, and during that night he escaped, he caught wind somehow that he was going to be killed by the chairman. That's why he escaped, and because he knew about his being a liability to Gil, he was able to get Lunamaria and Meyrin to his side" said Rey "Do you understand now, Shinn? If we continue to fight for him, then the war will never end" he added

Shinn, on the other hand, is still unable to get over the trauma that the truth had brought upon him, the truth that he was fighting not for peace, but to make war for another greater conflict, that he was just playing his part in a chess game that Gilbert Durandall was playing against the world.

_I guess I'm going solo on this one, huh?_ Thought Rey, judging from Shinn's reaction

"I never planned to tell anyone else about what I would do tonight but you" began Rey "But right now, it would take me about the whole energy tank of the Legend to get from here to ORB, that is without any resistance from pursuing forces and ORB defense forces who would see me as an enemy" he added

"Are.....are you really.....going away?" asked a distraught Shinn

"Yes, Shinn, and I'm not forcing you to come with me if you don't want to" replied Rey "In two hours I would head for the engineering bay and take the Legend with me, I just hope I get to the Archangel safe" he added

* * *

CE 73

Engineering Bay, ZAFT Headquarters, Gibraltar: 2000 Hours

* * *

"Finally, we're off!" said one engineer after stretching his arms

"Yeah, that's like 10 hours straight of mobile suit maintenance" said his teammate, who had just finished the physical set – up of the Destiny's OS

"Ok, you boys get some rest, we're going in late tomorrow, anyway" said the chief who was standing beside the light switch, as they were preparing to close off the hangar and call it a night

Rey, who was hidden under the Legend's container bed, was waiting for everybody to get out of the hangar so he could steal the Legend without alerting anybody

"Goodnight, boys" said the chief as the engineers left the hangar

"'night chief" replied the engineers who were walking back to their respective quarters

"Well time to close this up" said the chief after all engineers had left, he had already closed the shutters but he had yet to lock the side door

After the chief had locked the side door, Rey crept out under the container bed and jumped his way into the cockpit of the Legend, as he jumped on to the container bed, he accidentally kicked a soda can that an engineer had left behind, making a sound that alerted the chief, who had not gone too far from the hangar

The chief ran back to the side door and as he opened it, he noticed Rey breaking into the Legend, he thought he was testing it so he warned him that it's maintenance wasn't completed yet

"Hey! That thing's not done yet, get off of there!" he shouted, unfortunately for him, Rey has already turned on the power of the Legend, and as he slowly lifted the upper body of the mobile suit, he activated it's phase shift armor, and causing the ground to shake slightly

"Argh, this has got to stop!" called out the chief, who ran towards the emergency alarm button, as the chief broke the glass with an ax, he pressed the alarm button, alerting central command and sending all troops to the hangar

With standard conventional weaponry useless against the Phase Shift armor, Rey erected the Legend easily and got off the hangar without damage to the mobile suit and had avoided casualties to the ground troops. He then slowly started to activate the thrusters and headed off the island, mapping the ORB Union's coordinates in his digital map as he made haste to head there

* * *

CE 73

ZAFT Headquarters Ocean Borderline, Gibraltar: 0000 Hours

* * *

"Finally, I managed to get away safely" said Rey to himself "Now to get to ORB...."

Suddenly, his radar picked up 10 mobile suit signatures, as he looked in his IFF to identify them, it displayed that all 10 were GOUF Ignited units. As he turned to display them in his monitor, he was surprised to see 10 black GOUF Ignited in a V formation, he then noticed an insignia on the left shoulder plate and as he zoomed to see, he knew he was in trouble. The insignia had a white, circular background, with a pair of black swords crossed behind a checkered shield

"The Black Knights!? How did they find out I was fleeing!?"

The Black Knights, as he remembered in one of his private conversations with Gil, was a special unit within FAITH that received orders from no one else but the Chairman, not even to higher ranked FAITH members. They were an elite pilot squad that displayed bravery during the last war and had a record of no lost member within their squad, and an impressive ship kill record of 20 Izumo class ships and 150 mobile suit kills during the battle of Jachin Due

"Rey Za Burrel, stop right there or we'll open fire!" declared the squad leader over the radio

"So I guess Gil sent you boys here? As suspected" said Rey

"This is your last warning, Rey! Give up or die!" repeated the squad leader

"Well, I guess you guys could choose death for me!" replied Rey as he maneuvered each of his attached DRAGOON units to aim at the ten GOUFs, for ever though the DRAGOONS cannot disperse due to gravity, it can still pivot individually and attack whilst attached to the charging unit

Rey open fired but missed as the GOUFs broke formation and started to move in to surround the Legend in all direction.

_Damn it, they're moving in around me! I have to find a way to break through_ he thougth

Suddenly, his arms and legs were restrained by 4 GOUF units' whips as the remaining units charged toward the LEGEND with the beam sword, Rey broke free of the whips by aiming the unrestrained DRAGOONS towards the hands of the GOUFs restraining him, and barely missed the charging swords as he flew up to avoid them

Rey then combined his two beam sabers to form his Defiant Kai beam javelin as he charged back at the gathered GOUFs, though they all avoided getting destroyed by the very fast hit, three GOUF units got their arms sliced by the attack

With lessened attack – capable opponents, the battle was turning in favor of Rey, but then suddenly, a hidden GOUF unit below him sliced Rey's beam javelin with an upward slash coming from below, barely getting the Legend cut vertically in half.

With no close range weapon left, and with his energy running low due to incomplete maintenance and excessive use of the DRAGOONs, Rey had no other choice but to run away from the battle zone. Though his Legend is faster, the GOUF still managed to keep in his tail and Rey flew away whilst dodging shots from the beam vulcans of the GOUFs

One of Rey's thrusters was hit by a shot of a vulcan and thus slowed him down, with no melee weapon and reduced maneuverability, Rey was like a ZAKU faced against a Destroy. The GOUFs surrounded him again and charged, this time, slicing off the Legend's right foot from the knee.

The Black Knight's never intended to kill him so one of the GOUF's restrained the Legend around the torso, and along with the others flew back to the direction of the ZAFT Headquarters.

Suddenly, the whip was blown away by a stray beam shot coming from the direction of Gibraltar, a fast mobile suit signature was then detected, but before the Black Knights could get a visual, 5 of their units were disabled and were falling to the ocean. The remaining units then looked at the mobile suit and immediately identified it

"The D- it's the Destiny!" declared one of the remaining units

_What? Shinn!?_ Thought Rey as he was passing out

"What!? Even he....Argh! Take him out!" called out the leader

The Destiny proved to be too fast for the GOUFs as it easily disabled two more of the GOUF units, sending them hurling into the ocean. The Black Knights needed to retreat, as they would be annihilated if they stayed

"If you want the Legend, then come get it!" said the leader GOUF

The leader then released the Legend his GOUF was holding and kicked the cockpit, sending Rey hurling towards the water. The Destiny then caught the Legend as it was to hit the surface of the water.

"We'll get you back one day, Rey Za Burrel!" called out the leader of the Black Knights as he and the remaining units fled the battle zone

"Rey! Rey! Are you alright!? Rey!!" called out Shinn to the unconscious Rey as he was holding the Legend

"U-Urgh" groaned Rey, who felt blood dripping from his forehead "I...I'm fine" he said "Wh...why, Shinn?" he asked

"I was sent to go after you, but I realized, our friends were fighting for the right thing and we were on the wrong side" replied Shinn "Can the Legend still reach ORB?" he asked, worried about the damage on the Legend

"Yeah, but I'm running on one thrusters, I think I need a hand" replied Rey "I'll send the coordinates towards ORB to you" he said

As Shinn received the coordinates from Rey, he slung the Legend's arm behind the neck of the Destiny, to prevent the Legend from falling with it's weakened thrusters

"We'll use our thrusters to get there faster" said Shinn

"Right" said Rey, holding his head and wincing in pain from his wound

The Destiny, along with the Legend, then traveled towards the direction of the ORB Union, leaving Gibraltar forces unable to catch them. Their only hope is that ORB does not open fire on them.

* * *

CE 73

Onogoro Island, ORB Union Borderline: 0130 Hours

* * *

The crew of the Archangel is already resting after working the whole day, helping with the reconstruction of the city of ORB, ravaged by the previous conflict that displayed ZAFT's power. Still, with the large amounts of materials needed to be transported, mobile suits are used to carry supplies to different areas while the Gundams are to patrol the borderline.

-YAWN- "I'm tired, there's nothing that's gonna plan to attack us at this early" said Athrun, complaining from the long hours of going in circles in his assigned area

"Oh quit your whining, at least you get to see the nice view of the city skyline from here" argued Lunamaria, who was enjoying the view of the city's commercial district

"Come on, Athrun, Luna's right, you don't get to do this everyday so why not just find something good in it" added Kira, who also seemed to enjoy the view of the skyline

"Alright, maybe I sh......What!?" suddenly, two signatures came up in their radars, and the three immediately headed towards the supposed targets

They quickly rushed to the location of the two mobile suits and found two gray mobile suits heading straight for them, with their thrusters struggling to carry the weight

"Identify yourselves!" called out Lunamaria

"They can't respond with them dropping straight to the water, we gotta get them!" said Kira as he rushed in the Freedom to get the mobile suit carrying the damaged one

"I'll get the other one!" said Athrun as he launched the Justice's jetpack to catch the damaged mobile suit

As Lunamaria observed the two mobile suits, she made out something shocking

"Ah! Th-those two are!" she shouted

"You know these two?" asked Athrun

"T-The Destiny and the Legend! No doubt!" she replied

"Whaaatt!?" Athrun then took a closer look at the damaged Legend and the Destiny Kira was carrying "It is them! But what are they doing here!?" he asked

"Maybe.....they were chased down while they were escaping ZAFT?" wondered Luna

"Nevertheless, we have to find out if these are Shinn and Rey inside" said Kira "Athrun, let's take them to Onogoro" he added

"Yeah, I agree" said Athrun

The Destiny and Legend were then carried towards Onogoro and as Kira and Athrun put them back on solid ground, they opened their cockpits to reveal themselves

Lunamaria got down from her Amethyst and immediately ran towards the two mobile suits, when she saw Shinn getting down from the Destiny, she ran and took him in a surprise embrace

"I've missed you, Shinn" she said, nearing tears

"I've missed you too, Luna" replied Shinn "Where's Rey?" he suddenly remembered his injured friend aboard the Legend

"I'm here" said Rey, who was slumped on the leg of the Legend, being bandaged by Athrun with Kira walking towards them

"Rey!" Lunamaria ran towards Rey "Are you alright?" she asked

"Yeah, barely, hit my head on the cockpit after that GOUF kicked it into me" replied Rey

"You two were chased down?" asked Kira

"No, I was the only one chased down, Shinn just arrived to help me" replied Rey "They were called the Black Knights, a very dangerous group within FAITH" he added

"The Black Knights!? How come they're still around!?" a surprised Athrun asked

"You know of them, Athrun?" asked Lunamaria, switching glances between Athrun and Rey

"The black ops go – to – people of my father when he was chairman, but I've heard they've disbanded after Jachin Due" replied Athrun

"Yes, that's true, but they were all assigned to FAITH by Gil and they just started to come back together, now working under him" added Rey

"So they're the ones we're surely going to encounter next, right Rey?" asked Shinn

"Most likely, they know of our escape already, so naturally, Gil would take no chances 'cause we also took top – secret weapons with us" replied Rey, who then struggled to stand up, but was assisted by Kira and Athrun

"I wonder what they'll have for us next?" said Shinn

"Not nice, I'm sure of that, I've heard rumors that they have in their possession, authentic stocks of the X09A, X10A and the X13A" said Athrun

"So even you heard about it, huh? The second prototype units of the Freedom, Justice and Providence made shortly after you two took it from ZAFT's hands" commented Rey

"So it's true then?" asked Luna

"Even I don't know, Gil never told me anything about that, after all" replied Rey "I guess it's something just between him and the boys" he added

"Nevertheless, we must get ready for anything" said Kira "Come on, we'll get you patched up" he added, as he and Athrun helped Rey walk towards the Morgenroete Labs and to the Archangel.

With Shinn and Rey back on Lunamaria's side, the war gradually tips toward ORB's end of the scale, but with few surprises still up the chairman's sleeve, things would prove difficult for everyone.

* * *

**The dream team is complete! Now that all heroes are complete, the new villains gotta step in, and you've guessed it right, the Black Knights are coming in to steal the show. Not much is known about them, their names are known only by the chairman himself as they are somewhat like the "Secret Service" in ZAFT.**

**What's to see is the truth behind the rumors surrounding the second Freedom, Justice and Providence units. Do the Black Knights really have that kind of firepower in their arsenal? If they do, then it could mean big trouble for everyone, as their attacks as a group nearly killed Rey, not to mention while in the Legend.**

**I hope everyone enjoyed this and please review on what you think about the way the plot turned out**


	10. The Force In The Shadows

**Author's Notes:**

**Before anything else, I would like to say that I don't get to work on my fanfics every day, not because I am intentionally making you wait, but because it's not the only thing I'm doing. First of all, I am a member of a local Initial D team here in our place so I am away from the house every other day, and second, I'm currently taking up a review course for my upcoming College Entrance Tests so I would spend more time studying than working on here.**

**Also, if you want to make me hurry up in making the new chapter, please don't make a review, cause I get excited over seeing a new one and nearly got ticked off when I saw a review asking me to continue. It's as if a late update already means abandonment. If you want to make me hurry up in making a new chapter, just pm me and I'll tell you how it's progressing.**

**Chapter 10: The Force in the Shadows

* * *

**

CE 73

Archangel, Morgenroete Labs, ORB Union: 0600 Hours

* * *

After Shinn and Rey was taken into the Archangel, they went through the usual process of interrogation as to their reasons of defections and a few intel about ZAFT, in which they wholly complied to. Soon after, Rey was brought to the ship's infirmary to receive treatment to his injuries. Shinn, on the other hand, decided to talk the others first before he be taken to his and Rey's room.

"So, Shinn, why did you come here anyway?" asked Athrun, this was the question he had intended to ask from the very beginning

"It was after our battle in ORB, where Rey and I were thinking about the validity of what we were fighting for in ZAFT, we had these crazy ideas in our heads, ranging from the prolonged conflict that would come after LOGOS' fall, and a preceding world domination plot" he replied "But then, after we found out our machines were upgraded with very powerful weapons that were enough to destroy a whole army, we realized that those crazy ideas were in fact, true and were gonna happen if we stayed with ZAFT" he finished

"So you two decided to leave ZAFT?" asked Lunamaria

"It was Rey's idea to go out first, actually, and I was to be left behind" began Shinn "I was sent to go after him and the Legend, but when I was on the way, I realized the danger he was in and in the end, I decided to help him get away" he added

"So where does the enemy reinforcement come in?" asked Meyrin

"Actually, I really thought I was the only one to go after Rey, but when I arrived, I saw him getting carried back, with his Legend severely damaged, that's when I started to attack them, I knew I can save Rey, they were just GOUFs after all" replied Shinn, with a slight grin of delight on his face

"But then again, those guys took the Legend out by themselves, right?" said Kira

"I nevergot a chance to see how good they were, but if you think about it, yeah, they are formidable enemies alright" said Shinn

Then, Lacus arrived along with Mwu and Murrue

"So you're Shinn, I'm pleased to finally meet you" said Lacus, offering her hand

"Ah....thanks" Shinn accepted the handshake, with his face slightly turning red

_I didn't think Lacus Clyne would be more beautiful in person....I'm enthralled!_ He thought

_**I'm guessing Shinn's shocked to see Lacus in person**_ said Lunamaria

_**Well, with the way he looks, I think you're right on that one, sis**_ replied Meyrin

"Shinn, this is Captain Murrue Ramius, captain of the Archangel" said Luna, pointing to Murrue "And this is Commander Neo Roannoke" she added pointing to Mwu

"Well, I'm now thinking of how ZAFT reacted to what you two did" said Mwu

"You have a point, ZAFT won't let the theft of their remaining secret weapons go unsolved, after all" added Murrue

"In this situation, if ever what Rey had told us were true, they would use the three units against LOGOS now" replied Shinn

"The Freedom, Justice and Providence, right? We've talked with your friend" said Mwu

"When you think of it, Neo, you kinda look like the boy" commented Murrue

_Yeah, he could pretend to be Rey's father and everyone would be convinced_ thought Shinn

"Anyway, I think you need some rest, Shinn" began Athrun "Come on, I'll take you to your room" he added

Athrun, along with Shinn and others left the pilots lounge where they gathered, and headed to take Shinn to his room, where Rey was waiting for him. Once they arrived in front of the room, the door slid open to reveal a two bed room with Rey fast asleep in one.

"Here's your room, Shinn" said Athrun

"Rey!" Shinn immediately noticed his friend, sleeping in the left bed, and ran up to him

"Don't worry, Shinn" assured Luna "I'm sure Rey's fine, he's a tough one after all" she added "Anyway, you need rest too, Shinn, so try not to get worked up so easily" she finished, holding Shinn's shoulders, straightening him up

"Thanks, Luna, I'll try" he said as he calmed down

"Never forget that we're always here, Shinn" said Luna, giving a smile that Shinn found delightful

"By the way, Athrun" began Shinn as he looked towards Athrun and the others "What are you gonna do with the Destiny and the Legend?" he asked

"We're gonna take them to Morgenroete later for repairs" replied Athrun "You two need them, after all" he added

"Thank you, for everything" said Shinn, finally deciding to lie down in his bed and go to sleep, but not before bringing out Mayu's cellphone from his pocket "I'm finally getting close Mayu, close to the end of this war" he whispered

* * *

C.E. 73

ZAFT Headquarters, Gibraltar: 1000 Hours

* * *

The Black Knights' base, hidden deep within the central command headquarters in Gibraltar, is said to house the rumored second batch of the prototype N-Jammer X units. The surviving members decide to contact their commander, Chairman Durrandal for their plans to deal with the escaped Minerva pilots.

"I see you three managed to get back alive" said Durandall, appearing on a wide flat screen inside the base

"Yeah, we really want a piece of those two" said Alexander, the team's captain

"Don't worry, Alex, we'll see them again soon enough" said Martin, the third – in – command

"We'll take revenge for the others, I swear it" added Angelo, the team's recon man

"So does this mean you three are motivated already?" asked Durandall

"We already are, ever since the start of the war!" replied Alex

"Okay, then you have my permission to use those three machines" said Durandall "But listen to me, those people are far more dangerous than any other I've asked you to take down, Kira Yamato has single handedly brought down Rau Le Creuset, may I remind you" he added

"We know that, and that's why he's going to go down along with those traitors Za Burrel and Asuka!" said Martin

"The Freedom, Justice and the Providence, not too bad, just enough to kill those bastards!" added Angelo

"I guess I should leave you men for now" began Durandall "But for your next assignment, you are still not going to reveal your existence to the public, but rather, act in the shadows as usual. Our next target is the Requiem device that monster Djibril built against us, now with only the Minerva as our ace, I need you three to assist them without them knowing" he said "Oh, and if possible, take out Djibril without destroying the whole weapon, I would needing it if we were to take on ORB and that girl Lacus Clyne" he finished

"No problem, Durandall, you can consider that weapon yours" said Alex

"I'm hoping for something good, don't disappoint me again" said Durandall before cutting off his transmission

* * *

C.E. 73

Archangel, Morgenroete Labs, ORB Union: 1400 Hours

* * *

Meyrin had been keeping watch over Rey for the past 3 hours, the others told him he would be alright but she insisted. With only her sister knowing the reason why she's doing it

"_**Meyrin, tell me, why do you really want to stay with Rey?" **_asked Lunamaria

"_**It's nothing, sis, just want to make sure he'll see someone when he wakes up" **_replied Meyrin

"_**You were never really good at lying, Meyrin, you know?"**_ said Lunamaria

"_**What? What are you talking about, sis? You seem weird" **_said Meyrin

"_**I know you like him, Meyrin, you like Rey, don't you?" **_said Luna

"_**I guess I won't be able to hide anything from you, huh?" **_said Meyrin **_"I don't understand myself, but when we were back on the Minerva, I....I think I fell in love with him, Luna" _**she added

"_**Well, suit yourself" **_said Luna

"_**Wait! Wait! Don't tell this to anyone, please!"**_ Meyrin pleaded, which Luna responded with a nod

Rey had been sleeping for about half a day, recovering from the injuries he sustained during the attack of the Black Knights during his escape. Finally, he saw light and as he slowly opened his eyes, he could make out a figure with long, pink hair

"Rey?" she said

"Wh...where am I?" he asked

"Rey!" she said as she quickly jumped towards him and wrapped him in a warm embrace

"M...Meyrin?" he asked

"I'm glad you're alright, Rey" she replied, he groaned as she slowly sits him up

"I'm sorry!" she quickly apologizes, realizing she had hurt his wounds

"It's okay, they'll hurt one way or the other" he said "So, Meyrin, where am I?" he asked

"You're here in the Archangel, Shinn's there on the other bed" she pointed to the other bed that had it's blinds cover it

"I see, I must have been brought here after I went to the infirmary" he said as he recalls what had happened

"You know, I was worried about you, Rey" began Meyrin "When I heard that you've defected with Shinn, I was so happy, but when I heard you were injured I was kinda worried" she added

Rey chuckled, a feat he seldom does "I guess it's just like you, worrying too much" he said as he brushed away a few of Meyrin's hair from her forehead "You look beautiful with your hair down, you know" he added

_Did he just say I look beautiful? _Meyrin thought, and that made her blush "You know, Rey, you're the first person who told me that" she said

"Well, then I guess you've found a reason to not tie your hair again" said Rey, followed with a delighted laugh

"I guess you're right, hehe" said Meyrin

Outside the room, the others were secretly listening in, careful not to let go of the close button on the control panel beside the door. Luna had told the others about Meyrin's secret affection, and suggested that they listen in, now they also find out about an affection of Rey's that may be similar to that of Meyrin's

"You know, those two get along so well, they can fool me that they are actually a couple" said Kira

"Yeah, and Rey's laughing, for the first time in my life, I've heard him laugh, and that's with Meyrin, take note" added Athrun

"I guess, everything's going to payout for my little sis...whoa!" Luna, who was holding the close button, while setting her ear near the door, lost her balance and fell forward, releasing her finger from the button

The door suddenly opened and Kira, Athrun and Luna tumbled inside, much to Meyrin's shock

"Wha-what the hell were you doing there!!!?" she shouted

"Ehehehe....hiya Rey" said Luna

"Don't tell me you three were eavesdropping on me the whole time!?" asked Meyrin

"Well....sort of" admitted Athrun

"You're not the only ones" said Shinn as he slid off the blinds in his bed "You know, you too are really fit together" he added

Realizing everybody had been listening to their supposedly "private" conversation, both Rey and Meyrin's faces flushed red with embarrassment.

"Oh, look! They're both blushing!" pointed out Shinn

"That's a sign" added Luna

"I'm gonna get you for this, Luna!!" shouted Meyrin

* * *

**Well, finally, I get to finish this tonight! I really was at a loss with what I've said in the beginning, I never thought I would get that kind of reaction. To put it simply, guys, I really need your consideration on this one, 'cause I'm not somebody who would just be sitting at home. Well, maybe last year, I was. But now, things are different so please, though I don't like it to happen that way, I really hope you guys understand.**

**So anyway, I hope everybody liked this chapter, and tell me your ideas on the pairing ReyxMeyrin, cause they would go on until the end of this fic, which I have already planned out in my head. Only thing keeping me from the original storyboard would be me forgetting what I've planned. But nevermind that, just tell me guys what you think of the pairing and of the chapter and please, don't expect an update within this week, maybe next week or the week after but not now.**

**Again, I hope everyone enjoyed and please don't forget to review, I need them to make better chapters**


	11. Reconnecting Broken Ties

**It has been about -insert insane number of months here- since I last made an update for this fic...and I have only one thing to say: I'm very, very, very sorry everyone. My extreme procrastination has no excuses, the fact that I made FFXIII and MegaMan ZX fics before I finished this fic has put me in the uneasiest position a fanfiction writer could be in. Add to that, the fact that I need to take my studies seriously since I flunked a few of my subjects again :(( That left me with virtually no time to work on every single one, so I hope you guys can really forgive me. I promise I would finish this by January, that you can expect.**

**I can't really promise anything else, so all I hope is that you guys can enjoy the latest addition to the story**

**Chapter 11: Reconnecting Broken Ties

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**

CE 73

Archangel, Morgenroete Labs, Onogoro Island, ORB Union: 0800 Hours

The next morning, everyone except Shinn and Mwu had gathered on the bridge for the update on the PLANTS from the Eternal. They were all expecting a transmission from Captain Andrew Waltfeld who had successfully infiltrated the PLANTS Colony thanks to some of the Lacus Loyalists they have on the inside. Miriallia's CIC monitor suddenly lit up as a transmission request from the Eternal came in.

"Incoming transmission coming from the Eternal, patching it through." she said as she pressed a few keys before looking to her right, at the monitor, where Andrew appeared.

"Captain Waltfeld, how are things doing up there?" asked Kira as he saw Andrew

"We're fine up here, the Eternal's managed to find a new hiding spot," he replied, his eye then directed towards Rey, Meyrin and Luna who were standing beside Miriallia's CIC station. "but I have a lot to tell you guys." he said as his expression turned serious "The four kids of ZAFT are now wanted for desertion and for stealing top secret military technology, which means that you four won't be able to face your friends at ZAFT and expect to be welcomed with open arms."

"Don't worry, Captain Waltfeld, we have no intention." replied Rey with a confident look on his face

"That's good to hear." said Andrew before turning his attention to Kira and Athrun "Here's more, the people who chased down the two kids when they fled, actually have aces up their sleeve." those words garnered surprised looks on all people on the bridge "The Black Knights have in their possession, three gundams you people are far too familiar with, designations ZGMF-X09BL, ZGMF-X10BL and ZGMF-X13BL." he finished

After taking a moment to think through what Andrew said, Kira and Athrun were struck hard by what they both realized.

"No way! That's impossible!" cried out Athrun.

Everyone on the bridge was shocked, including the crew of the Minerva who were also aware of the destruction of all three units fitted with N-Jammer Cancellers. None of them expected that their new enemy had such powerful weapons in their arsenal.

"I'm guessing Chairman Durandall had these made for them." said Kira as he thought of the possibility because of the fact that the Black Knights were under the direct control of the chairman.

"That would be the most likely case," replied Andrew "but it's best for you people to be careful when you encounter them, we never know what the hell those boys have in the gundams." he said

"We will, don't worry." assured Kira

"That's all I have for now, I'll tell you when I get something new, Waltfeld out." he said before cutting off the transmission

The crew of the Archangel were now left to discuss their new, stronger enemies. Athrun looked so distraught at the thought of ZAFT making more weapons of war, for him, it was like reliving the hell his father raised once again. Kira, on the other hand, showed no reaction, but was really thinking about the direction the war would now be taking, with the threat raised to a higher level, the war would surely take a turn for the worst.

* * *

CE 73

Chairman's office, PLANTS: 0825 Hours

"Mr. Chairman," Durandall's secretary called out from outside his door, he had asked her to bring him something from the ZAFT Personnel Records. The door slid open and she slowly stepped in "I've brought Lunamaria and Meyrin Hawke's Personnel Records as you requested, sir." she said as she stepped inside.

"I see," Durandall, who was facing away from the door, slowly swiveled his chair to face her "thank you then, you may hand it to me now." he said as he reached out his open hand to receive the envelope from his secretary. Once she had given him the envelope, he gestured his free hand upward, giving her permission to leave.

He did not open the envelope until his secretary had left the room, and once she did, he reached down under his desk for a button that would lock his door. He opened the envelope and pulled the two papers that were attached and laid them down on his desk. He studied the two papers and his eyes glanced back and forth on the remarks section of the papers.

"_Matching high brainwave activities suggest possibility of telepathic communication. Observation of actions is strongly recommended."_

Reading those lines put an evil smile on his face _Interesting, I never thought that the Hawke sisters had this big of a secret _he thought as he slowly put the papers back on the envelope before leaving it on his desk. He then went on to stand up from his desk and sit on the couch with the glass chess table. He moved the white king forward as it took out black rook standing in front.

Then an imaginary image of his friend Rau Le Creuset appeared seated in front of him on the opposite couch.

"_Just how are you supposed to get what you want?" _asked Rau _"I don't expect you to just rush in and get them out."_ he added

Durandall then rested his elbow on the edge of his couch and placed his chin over his hand and smiled at Rau

"I'm not that stupid," he began "besides, I'm not the kind of person to use them for my own purposes." he said, then looking around his dark room "I simply thought of a way to get into the kids' heads, their totally naïve, after all." he finished

Rau then chuckled at his words _"You still are that nice politician I knew,"_ he began _"preferring mind games over sadistic methods."_ he said _"Now I see why all representatives' hearts are with you." _

"Oh, stop it, you're making me look too nice." replied Durandall "I just consider those methods too cruel, I value dignity above everything else, after all." he added

Rau just gave off a sigh _"Well, no matter, I'll always be watching over the decisions my friend makes"_ he said before slowly disappearing

"Thanks, friend." Durandall whispered as he looked up to the dark ceiling "This is probably the last time I'll be seeing you in this cramped place." he added

* * *

CE 73

Pilots' Lounge, Archangel, Morgenroete Labs, ORB Union: 0900 Hours

Mwu was in the lounge for the past hour, something was definitely bothering him.

_Damn, how the hell am I gonna tell that kid Shinn that I broke my word with him regarding Stellar _he thought _I just can't tell him about it and expect him to just leave it at that_

Shinn was walking around the ship when he came upon the Pilots' Lounge, where he saw Mwu sitting in one of the couches, looking a bit uneasy. Since he was new to the ship, he needed to get familiar with everyone in it just like when he was in the Minerva, so he decided to approach him to find out if something was bothering him.

"Umm...Commander Roanoke?" he asked as he approached Mwu

Mwu was taken by surprise, as he jumped a bit after hearing Shinn call out to him

_Great, the last thing I need is this, well, guess it's now or never_ he thought "Hey, you're that Shinn guy, right?" he asked _Real smooth, Neo, real smooth_

"Ye-yeah, is there a problem?" asked Shinn, he knew something really was bothering the commander

"Well, I'd like to talk to you about something, actually," began Mwu "it's about Stellar." he said, sternly

"How...how do you know about her?" Shinn was shocked, after all, only him and his ZAFT companions know about her

"Before everything else, I would like to ask for your forgiveness on that matter" continued Mwu, "because you see, we've already met once before, and I broke my word I made with you that time." he finished, hoping that Shinn would realize what he was trying to tell him

_Neo...Neo Roanoke! _Shinn gasped at his realization, the man in front of him was the man he had entrusted Stellar "So, you're _that_ Neo" he said, his tone was more serious this time, which Mwu simply nodded in reply "I...I don't know what to say. I mean, that day...I just never expected things to turn out like this!" Shinn was frustrated, he didn't know if he wanted to hit Mwu in the face or just keep all emotions to himself.

Mwu was silent, looking down, filled with guilt as he slowly recalled how he had ordered Stellar's memories to be reset, and the moment he had presented her the Destroy as if it was a gift to her. "If you want to hit me, go ahead, I'll take in everything as long as it's enough for my burden to lighten, because honestly, I can't handle this anymore, not with you around." he said, sadness in his voice

Instead, Shinn was on his knees, desperately trying to hold back the tears in his eyes as he remembered the time when he had brought Stellar's dead body into the river. He can't find himself to hit Mwu, all because he still blamed himself for everything that had happened. "I...I forgive you...but I have one request for you." he said in between tears. Mwu looked curiously at the young boy, after all, if he had the choice, he should be the one on the ground. "Please...just please don't...please don't ever mention her to me again, she's gone now, and there's no reason to go back to those awful memories" he pleaded

"I...I understand" replied Mwu, when Shinn got back to his feet, he offered him a handshake, which left Shinn dumbfounded "So I guess we can finally call everything quits" he said, before Shinn accepted the handshake

Before the two could say anything else, the PA system on the Archangel went up "All pilots please proceed to the bridge, repeat, all pilot please proceed to the bridge" said Miriallia, then Shinn and Mwu looked at each other and smiled before hurrying to the hallway and to the bridge.

* * *

CE 73

Bridge, Archangel, Morgenroete Labs, 0930 Hours

When Shinn and Mwu arrived they saw that everybody else was there. Kira was standing with Lacus and Cagalli on the side stairs, Athrun was sitting on the CIC with Luna behind him, Rey was on the top platform with Meyrin. Shinn headed down to Luna while Mwu stood beside Murrue.

"Transmission from Eternal confirmed, relaying it now" said Miriallia as she entered a few keys on her station and Andrew Waltfeld appeared on the screen

"We have a situation here in the PLANTS, a very bad one" began Andrew "Just a few hours ago, Lord Djibril launched a sneak attack on the PLANTS Colony Januarius from the moon" pictures of the Januarius colony wreckage flashed through the screen, earning shocked gasps from everyone "It seems that Djibril has managed to escape to the Earth Alliance Daedalus Lunar Base on the moon, and he has a new weapon with him there," he said, then the screen flashed images of the trajectory data taken from the recent laser attack "this weapon, so called 'Requiem' uses several Geschmeig Panzer units on several empty colonies strategically positioned around space to curve the high power positron beam and direct it to any location using specific coordinates." he finished

"Nobody expected LOGOS to have this powerful weapon," began Athrun "and look at the damage it has done!"

"Has the Chairman retaliated?" asked Kira

"As of now, my sources tell me that he's ordered all front line forces in Arzachel to hold the line," replied Andrew "but there's something stange with his orders, the Minerva has been ordered to head immediately to Daedalus base and launch a surprise attack on the enemy forces." he added

"But how the hell are they going to attack a fortress with all us pilots gone?" asked Rey

"Shortly after all four of you kids were officially labeled traitors by the chairman, the Black Knights, under the alias '73rd Mobile Suit Corp.' were assigned to the Minerva, and subsequently, they've loaded the Freedom, Justice and Providence onto the ship," said Andrew "making the Minerva the only battleship with mobile suits capable of such assaults" he finished

"The Black Knights never let up!" Athrun was furious, after all, he knew the true intentions of having the Black Knights board the Minerva, which was to be able to combat the Archangel in future battles

"Anyway, that's all I have for you now, but if I see this correctly, I'd say that you need to get here as soon as possible. We may have another all – out war in our hands" said Andrew before cutting transmission

"No, this is not happening!" cried out Cagalli, taking everyone by surprise at her sudden outburst "ORB is going to take the heat for letting Djibril escape and do this!" she added

"Not only that, but if the chairman manages to get rid of LOGOS, the next thing he'll do is to make it clear that ORB was all at fault." added Athrun "And right now, there's nothing we can do but watch"

"It's useless, then" said Mwu, but rather happily "Even if we do something now, it's still useless" he added

"Then we will still fight" said Kira "The chairman must be stopped if we are to protect ORB," he then walked towards Athrun "will you join me once more, Athrun?" he offered his hand, which Athrun immediately took

"Yes, we need to fight once more, for what we believe in!" he said, then looking to the other people in the bridge, all replying with affirmative nods

"I guess everyone else here shares the same idea" said Shinn

* * *

CE 73

Outside Balcony, Archangel, Morgenroete Labs: 1000 Hours

After deciding that they should set for space the soonest possible time, everyone left the bridge to attend to some matters. Kira and Athrun went back to the hangar to check on the final configuration settings for the Freedom and the Justice. Shinn went with Luna to the mess hall to get him acquainted with the other members of the crew. Lacus stayed on the bridge to discuss some matters with Mwu and Murrue while Cagalli left the ship to go back to the ORB Council where she would hold a meeting with all other representatives.

Rey, however, decided to think things through on the balcony outside the Archangel, feeling that the cool wind would help him think better.

_I never expected to see things behind the scenes, and now that I have, I guess I have been duped like that for a long time by Gil._ _I wonder though, if Rau had the same intentions before as Gil has now. I guess because I trusted him too much, I never took a second look at what everything we've been doing was for. I'm not one to side with LOGOS, but I'm not going to sit by and see Gil's plan unfold, it's just crazy _

His train of thought was abruptly ended when he heard footsteps from behind him. When he turned to look, he saw Meyrin standing on the door leading back to the ship interior, her hair down as she had earlier that day. He brushed his hair, which was continuously blown by the calm wind, away from his face, then smiling at her. Meyrin smiled back as she walked towards him, standing beside him as she looked on to the horizon that extended across the clear waters of Onogoro bay.

"What are you doing here? It's not like you to stay in a place like this" she said, commenting on him staying outside. After all, he was always the one holed up in his room with his computer.

"I just thought that this would be a great place to think things" he replied

"Why? Are you having doubts all of a sudden?" she curiously asked

He chuckled "It's not that," he replied, turning his attention away from the pleasing sight of the water to her "I just can't believe how I...we have all been playing our roles without even knowing we are" he said, anger present in his voice "How we've been played for fools, by the man I trusted the most, no less" he added "Everything happened so fast that I don't even know what to do anymore"

Rey turned to Meyrin when she suddenly threw herself onto him "Me...Meyrin?" he asked, he looked at her and somehow heard her sobbing "Meyrin, are you...are you crying?" he asked, now worried

"I...I'm just happy," she looked up, revealing her teary eyes "happy that you're here with me, Rey. Because...because I never really wanted to see you against us" she added

Rey didn't know what to do, he can feel his face turning red, but at that moment, he found himself slowly wrapping his arms around her. He was nervous, at first, but when he did, he felt strangely comfortable _What is this feeling? I've known her for a long time but this time, everything's different, I can't explain it but I...why do I feel like my mind suddenly became clear? _he thought

Meyrin tried to pull herself away from him, realizing what she had done, but instead, she felt his arms wrap tighter around her. Her eyes widened, she couldn't control herself from returning the warm embrace he gave as she too wrapped her thin arms around him. She can feel him lean closer to her ear "Thank you, Meyrin" he sweetly whispered to her ear.

The two of them kept their warm embrace for a few moments before they hesitantly pulled apart. Meyrin smiled at Rey before walking back to the lobby, without a word. Rey stared as she walked back to the ship, when she arrived at the entrance, she stopped and turned back "You're welcome, Rey" she said before she entered the ship and walked back inside.

Rey looked back at the bay, which had now reflected the bright light of the sun beautifully. He smiled, for once in his life, Rey Za Burrel openly smiled. It was also the first time that he felt so content, to the point that he seemingly wanted no more.

* * *

**There you go, the long-long-long awaited update for the fic. Nothing to say, just again, I'm very sorry for the century – long update, but just to let everyone know: I will not die.**

**I really can't guarantee anything about the next chapter, the least time you can see it updated would be early next year, which would be from new year's day to the second week of January. I know it's long but working on three fics at the same time ain't exactly something one can do overnight, especially when you want it done very well. Speaking of which, I did my best to take my time on making this one, because I realized that rushing this would probably end up in more questions asked than answered.**

**Rey finally comes out of his shell and starts to warm up to people, and Meyrin would be the first to see his hidden side. The new alliance has been formed, and they have only one goal in mind: Stop Chairman Durandall's plans of world control. The Chairman doesn't fight a losing battle though, as the Black Knights' newest toys are revealed, and with their formidable skills, they would prove to be a force to even the odds.**

**I just hope my work was enough for everyone to enjoy, so please review to tell me what you thought of it. Remember, creative criticism means dearly to a learning writer like me.**


	12. The Game of Minds

**Chapter 12: The Game of Minds**

* * *

CE 73

Archangel, Kaguya Mass Driver Loading Port, ORB Union: 2000 Hours

Athrun was on the ship's exterior balcony, looking at the night sky and the bright moon as the wind gently blew his long, blue hair back. He was pondering on the upcoming battles they will face.

_Just when things were looking up for us, comes the nightmare reliving itself. I just hope those four keep themselves safe, no, I'm now here to make sure they are. If it's my fault they were put in this position, it's my responsibility to see that they make it through this alive._

"You know, it's quite lonely if you look at the night sky alone." said Kira as he too, got on the exterior balcony. He leaned on the metal railings as he looked at his best friend, and then towards the bright moon. "So we're in the same boat again, huh, Athrun?" he asked.

"Hey, you talk like you're not happy with me being here." jokingly replied Athrun "What? You've become a credit-hungry guy all of a sudden?"

"You know I'll never be like that." said Kira. The two of them then broke into laughter after that. "But seriously, haven't we seen enough conflict? I mean we've fought for the same cause over and over again, we came out alive and yet we keep on coming back for more."

Athrun then looked at his friend "You know if there's one thing that the Chairman told me that I still believe, it's this: As long as there are different powers in this world, there will always be conflict, that is why we need strength." he said "I never really believed it until the time I went back on the Minerva, now I'm beginning to see the logic of his treachery." he added

"Now, don't tell me you're starting to side with him." Kira grew worried about the thoughts of his friend.

"Nothing like that, you have to admit, those words are as true as they can be." insisted Athrun "That's the same reason why we hold those machines, because as long as the world is in danger of war, we are there to make sure no harm comes to those dear to us."

"Yeah, you're right." said Kira "But what if...what if those powers are on the same terms, both having a mutual relationship, content with gaining from one another? Wouldn't there be a reason for war if so?"

_What? Two sides having a partnership...and benefiting from one another...it could end the cycle of wars...but is it possible? _Wondered Athrun. He simply nodded in response to his friend's reasoning.

"You better take a good look at the night sky, Athrun. Because this is the last time we're gonna see it for a while." said Kira, admiring the view of night sky as he brushed the brown hair blown by the wind from his face.

"Yeah, there's no telling if the sky will still look as good as this when this is all over." said Athrun.

* * *

CE 73

Archangel Bridge, Kaguya Mass Driver Loading Port, ORB Union: 2200 hours

Again, the pilots, Lacus, Cagalli and Meyrin were on the bridge to discuss what they'll do once they get the ship into orbit.

"Incoming transmission from the Eternal, connecting it now" said Miriallia, once again revealing Andrew Waltfeld on the monitor

"I hate to say this, but you kids from the Minerva really are special." said Andrew

"I hope you really don't mean that, commander Waltfeld." said Shinn, who wasn't really convinced with Andrew's comment about them.

"My inside man on the PLANTS Supreme Council just sent me a wiretapped conversation between Chairman Durandall and Dr. Roberts, the one in charge of studying the data recovered from the Lodonia Extended Lab of the Earth Forces. I suggest you listen to it very carefully, Waltfeld out." with that, Andrew cut off the communications line.

"We've received the sound file, here goes." Miriallia pressed a couple of buttons on her station and connected the said conversation on the bridge's speakers.

"_Dr. Roberts, I assume you've studied the files that I sent over to your office." _said Durandall

"_Of course, Chairman Durandall. But what are you planning to do with these two?" _asked Roberts, who, judging by his tone, was an elderly doctor

"_I remember reading something in the files of the Hawke sisters that there is a possibility of them having telepathic abilities. Have you confirmed it?" _asked Durandall

"_Well, I wouldn't exactly say confirmed, because these files are all we have. Even the lab results showed no certain results."_ replied Roberts _"Indeed, their brainwave activities are very high, and are similar to one another, but that alone could be coincidental. Plus the fact that they are not twins contributes to the improbability of such ability. But there is something very interesting about the data." _added Roberts

"_Would you care to enlighten me, doctor?"_

"_These high brainwave activity readings not only suggest the presence of the SEED factor like the ones present in Kira Yamato, Athrun Zala and Shinn Asuka, but these readings are identical to those of the artificially-induced Extendeds of the Earth Forces. This brings up the possibility of the Hawke sisters having some sort of natural ESP." _

"_Well, well, that is certainly interesting." _said Durandall _"What do you suppose we do now at this point, doctor?" _

"_If you would allow me, I believe some sort of experimentation is needed for us to find out some more about this phenomena." _replied Roberts

"_That could be a problem, seeing as both the Hawke sisters have deserted ZAFT. Nevertheless, it piques my interest, I'll try to find some way to have them captured." _said Durandall _"Until then, doctor, please concentrate on the Extended data analysis." _

Silence filled the bridge for a few moments, everyone was in shock out of what they heard. Especially Meyrin, who now had a hand over her mouth, unable to believe what she had just heard. Then, Shinn broke the silence.

"So he was more than just a man manipulating others behind the scenes...he's a sick bastard!" he cried out

"Shinn." Athrun was dumbfounded with what he just heard from the Chairman

"Now it seems we have more than just the threat of the Requiem to worry about, huh?" said Mwu, then turning towards Luna and Meyrin "I have a feeling the Chairman would come after you two once he's finished with LOGOS."

"Ho...how did they even find out?" said Luna, the secret of their telepathy was kept only between the two of them after all. "We worked so hard to keep it a secret...but how?"

"So it is true then, I had a feeling you two had something like that." said Athrun "But now that he knows too, all the more reason for us to fight him." he added

"But..." suddenly blurted out Cagalli "How was it possible for you two to have telepathy when you aren't twins?" she asked

"We don't know ourselves, we just found out we can when we were in the military academy." replied Luna

Rey, who was standing next to Meyrin, realized that she was shaking. He slid his hand into hers and when she looked at him, he smiled at her warmly. Meyrin's eyes grew wide at Rey, then when her eyes started to water, she couldn't help but throw herself into the blonde's arms. Rey was surprised at this, and decided to hold Meyrin tightly to comfort her.

"I'm scared, what will happen to us now?" said Meyrin "Rey, what will happen to me, to Luna?" she asked

"Sssh." said Rey "Don't worry, I'm here. I'll protect you, I promise I won't let anyone hurt you." he said. Then he looked at the others "We need to put an end to this, for everyone's sake." he said

Murrue took a deep breath before standing up from her chair and facing everyone. "In any case, we have to get to orbit as soon as we can." she then turned to Shinn and Rey "Plus, only the Eternal has the capability to repair and maintain your machines, so you'll have to wait until we get up there before you can use it again." she said

"It's no problem, captain, as long as we can use them again is what's important after all." replied Rey, Shinn nodded afterwards.

"Alright, departure will be in 4 hours. Until then, everyone can relax in their rooms. I suggest you do, you might not be able to do so again once we get up there." said Murrue, with it, everyone except Mwu and Cagalli left the bridge. Kira and Athrun went back to the hangar to do the final checks on their machines, since they'll be guarding the side of the ship as it goes off on the mass driver. Shinn, Luna, Meyrin and Rey went to the sisters' room.

"I'll inform the Morgenroete to get Kaguya ready for you, captain." said Cagalli

"Thank you, miss Cagalli." replied Murrue

"I guess we should get a good rest ourselves, we'll most likely be busy once ZAFT's retaliation on Daedalus starts." said Mwu

"I agree." said Murrue

* * *

CE 73

Archangel Quarters, Kaguya Mass Driver Loading Port, ORB Union: 2300 hours

The four were now in the girls' room, and Meyrin has somehow managed to calm down thanks to Rey.

"So, what do you think of that conversation earlier?" asked Shinn

"I've really nothing much to say, other than I'm better off worrying about me and Meyrin more than anything else." replied Luna "But to be honest, I'm scared out of my wits right now, the thought of being treated like the extendeds, maybe worse, just makes me wanna run for my life."

"We really have no other choice but to fight them head on." said Rey "Right now, we can just focus on keeping each other safe, after all, we've ticked off ZAFT so much they'll most certainly shoot us on first sight." he added

_**I feel useless, sis **_said Meyrin to Luna

_**What are you saying, Meyrin? **_

_**All of you get to go out there and fight, while I'm here doing nothing **_

Lunamaria decided to break the telepathy between them "Meyrin, I feel better knowing you are safe here rather than being out there." she said

"What?" wondered Shinn_ That came out of nowhere_ he thought

"Meyrin, not being able to be out there doesn't make you less of what you are. You've saved our asses more times than I can count." added Luna "Just don't ever think you are useless, just because you're not out there fighting."

"Mey..." said Rey

"I'm sorry, I just thought I could help somehow" said Meyrin

"You being on the ship is more than help, Mey." said Rey "It'll help us feel better knowing that you are safe here. Remember, I won't let anyone hurt you." he said as he pulled Meyrin into his arms

Luna and Shinn looked at each other and smiled. Their looks tell everything, they were glad that things are working out very well for Rey and Meyrin.

* * *

CE 73

Archangel Hangar, Kaguya Mass Driver Loading Port, ORB Union: 2300 hours

Kira and Athrun were on the mobile suit computers on the hangar, reviewing their equipment and configurations on their mobile suits.

"You know, Meyrin was really scared earlier, she was shaking." said Kira

"Yeah, I can't really blame her, she must have thought that ZAFT was after her and Luna." said Athrun "I'm not really one to know or judge about ESP, but I'd say those two really are exceptional for them to have something like that. I didn't really believe it myself at first." he added

"There really are a lot of unexplained things in the world. Things we are yet to see. Coordinators were just a single stone in the lot." said Kira

"Yeah." said Athrun "And in speaking of unexplained things, it seems that Rey and Meyrin really are getting along well." he added

"I noticed. That Rey guy doesn't really seem to be social type when I first saw him." said Kira

"To be honest, he actually isn't. Even when we were aboard the Minerva, he was always that calm, calculating guy. I never really saw him to be involved with anyone, the least of all , Meyrin." said Athrun, who smiled at the thought of Rey's unseen side.

* * *

CE 73

Archangel Hangar, Kaguya Mass Driver Loading Port, ORB Union: 0200 hours

Murrue had gathered every person in the Archangel in the hangar to have a final briefing with Cagalli before they set off to space. She, Cagalli, people who were once her father's advisors, Mwu, Kira and Lacus were standing in front of eveyone.

"I'm guessing everyone is here." said Murrue as she observed the crew. There was Athrun, Shinn, Rey, Luna and Meyrin in the first row. Miriallia and all the people on the bridge were on the second. The mess hall and medical crew were in the third and fourth rows, respectively; and Chief Mechanic Kojiro Murdoch and all other mobile suit and ship maintenance crew were on the last. "Shall we begin, then, miss Cagalli?" she took a step back to let Cagalli have the floor.

"I know that this is all too sudden," began Cagalli "but because of this ship's various contributions in the defense against the ZAFT invasion, I took the liberty of enlisting this ship in the ORB Military's 2nd Space Fleet. It will also act as the ORB Union's flagship in future confrontations, being supported by the different Izumo-class ships of this nation." she then turned to the Minerva pilots "As for the the four defectors of ZAFT, I have enlisted you in the ORB Military's space fleet, assigned to this very ship, the Archangel. I cannot thank you four enough for all that you've done." the four responded with a salute, which Cagalli replied with a nod. "Captain Ramius, if you please."

Murrue then took a step forward "The ship will launch in thirty minutes, all hands, report back to your assigned stations until the said time!"

"Yes ma'am!" the crew responded along with a salute, which Murrue returned. Everyone scurried back to their stations while Athrun and the Minerva crew stayed.

Cagalli turned to Mwu "Captain Roannoke, I'm entrusting the Akatsuki to you." the two of them then looked at the Golden Mobile Suit that was standing behind them.

"You can count on me." replied Mwu

"Lady Cagalli, we should get going." said one of her advisors

Cagalli simply ignored her advisors for a moment and walked towards Athrun and the Minerva crew. She first looked at Shinn and Rey. "Even though we haven't known each other for a longer time, and even though we were on opposite terms back before now, I still believe you two can greatly help the others in this endeavor. That is the reason why I've decided to put you in the ORB military." she said

"But, representative Attha, we haven't really done anything." said Shinn

"No, you may have done us the biggest favor we could ever ask." began Cagalli "You decided to leave ZAFT, and nearly got killed because of it. You took with you two of the weapons that would surely fall the balance into ZAFT's favor. If there's one more favor I would like to ask of you two, it would just be to wear the ORB Military uniforms I left for you in your rooms just now. It would mean a lot, knowing that you decided to throw away your commitments to the PLANTS to fight for our cause."

"It was nothing but our principles that led us here, dear representative." said Rey

Cagalli nodded, and then turned to the Hawke sisters. "You saved Athrun, and no gratitude will ever be enough for what you two have done." she said "Just take care of yourselves, I ask for nothing more than that."

"We will survive, miss Cagalli. I promise." said Luna

Cagalli finally turned to Athrun. The two them exchanged smiles for a few moments before Athrun pulled her into a warm embrace.

"I'm here now. I'll never leave you alone again. When this is all over, I promise, I'll still be here." he whispered to her ear as she rested her head on his shoulder. They broke apart soon after.

"Even though I can't be with you up there, I will never lose faith in you guys, you have my word." with that, Cagalli went on with her advisors to go back to the ORB Council.

* * *

**I am so sorry if I haven't updated for months, I was busy writing a Phoenix Wright fic along with this and I ended up working with that, then came the very busy schedule I had after graduation. I never should've promised an update in the first place. Right now, college is taking up nearly all of my time, and it took me four days just to get this chapter done.  
**

**Anyway, here we are, the new crew of the Archangel are now about to head towards space for their final confrontation with Chairman Durandall. How much of Gil's mind game has affected the Hawke sisters? That'll come to light in future chapters.**

**So I won't promise any updates soon, but this fic isn't dead yet, not until I die (hopefully not XD) I hope everyone still enjoyed reading it and please, don't hesitate to review.**


	13. Calm Before The Storm

**Chapter 13: Calm Before The Storm**

* * *

CE 73

Staff Quarters, Archangel, ORB Union, 0205 Hours

After their briefing on what would be their final battle against Chairman Durandall, and what was their immediate enlistment into the ORB Military, Shinn and Rey, along with Luna and Meyrin went back to their quarters to get their last time off before tensions reached their highest in battle. As Cagalli had told the two boys after the briefing, they found ORB Military uniforms on their respective beds, and quickly changed into them.

"These don't look too bad." commented Shinn as he looked over himself in his white and blue themed uniform

"Yeah, it actually looks nice if you ask me." added Rey as he too observed his new uniform. As he looked over towards Shinn, he noticed the glossy yellow over green colored bars on his lapel, he looked towards Luna and saw the same symbol, Meyrin however, had a different one on her lapel, instead of the yellow-green combination, it had a red over white color theme. Rey looked down to his own lapel and saw that it had the same insignia as Shinn and Luna's, so he asked. "Hey, what do these mean? I'm guessing some sort of rank?" he pointed out to his lapel.

"Yep, it's a rank symbol alright." replied Luna, who looked down to her lapel insignia "Us three have the same rank symbol, meaning you two have also been appointed Commanders on the ORB Military." she said quite gleefully before looking over towards her sister "Meyrin meanwhile has been appointed as an Ensign on the ORB Military, since she would be assigned to help with the CIC duties on the Archangel."

"Wow, that's pretty generous of them, appointing defectors to such high positions." said Shinn, impressed with the ORB Military's warm treatment with them.

"We're defectors, after all, they'd naturally want us to feel comfortable so as to make sure we won't do the same to them." said Rey, seeing the logical point of having them assigned to positions a normal soldier would take years to reach.

Just then, a message was broadcast across the Archangel.

_Attention all personnel, the Archangel's departure will be delayed for at least 5 hours for a faulty thruster replacement is needed, all hands are relieved from their current duties and are to remain on standby until further notice. I repeat..._

Shinn breathed a sigh of relief over the emergency news "Calm before the storm, huh?" he said

"What do we do now?" asked Meyrin

"_**What do 'we' do huh?" **_Luna looked towards her sister and asked her mentally, putting enough emphasis on the word _we_

"_**Look, it's not what you think, sis!"**_ Meyrin, even without verbally saying anything, flushed red

Suddenly, Luna threw Shinn a glare, confused as to what it meant, he switched glances between her, Meyrin and Rey, who was sitting on his bed staring blankly out the door. Seeing Luna's eyes change expression every now and then, and Meyrin's flushed face, it was only then that Shinn got the meaning of the earlier glare. He slowly stood up "Oh, I forgot I was to enter the Destiny's specifics into the Archangel's database, hehe." he said as he scratched the back of his head, then turned around and walked out of the room.

Luna lightly smiled at Shinn's sudden departure and went on to go after him "Shinn, wait for me!" she said as she quickly got up and ran out of the room, leaving her sister and the spaced-out blonde in their room.

"_**Have fun, Meyrin!" **_Luna teased as she got out of the room.

All the younger Hawke could do was sigh at the predicament Shinn and her sister left them with. As the door of their room slid closed moments later, silence came to, and even if Meyrin took quick glances towards Rey, who was now looking down, seemingly deep in thought, she couldn't find the words to say to break the silence. _It's just me and him, what should I say though? I can't think of anything..._ she thought

Rey however, also took quick glances towards Meyrin, only when she wasn't looking, like her, he was also thinking of words to say. _I've been thinking of what to say, but I couldn't think of any...maybe I should ask her to go somewhere, but what would everyone think? _He was also lost in thought, just like her.

When one of them decided to break the silence, neither of them thought they had the same thing in mind.

"Umm..." they both started

"Ah, you first." said Rey

"No, no, it's nothing important. What were you gonna say?" replied Meyrin.

_Well, anyone could think what they want, but this is probably the last time I'm gonna see her like this. _"I was gonna ask if...if you would like to go with me somewhere?" he asked

Meyrin was surprised at his question, there's no denying there's something else between the two of them, but with no one admitting their true feelings yet, being in the same room like that still seemed awkward for the both of them. "Oh, alright, where do you have in mind?"

Without saying anything, Rey took Meyrin's hand and led her along as he went to where he wanted to take her. Her face really flushed as she was walking with Rey holding her hand, as Rey expected, all eyes were on them, but not a single one thought negatively. They went past the hangar where Shinn and Luna were, who simply smiled at them and waved, when they passed by, chief mechanic Kojiro Murdoch simply smiled and said "Young love, this ship's always been blessed with it."

It was but a few moments later that Rey had actually stopped, and when Meyrin looked around, she found themselves outside, in one of the Archangel's few balconies. She then wondered why Rey would bring her here, then it hit her, this was the place where she found him alone, and where he held her in his arms.

"Yesterday, you found me here, but I never really got to tell you why I was here." he started, she only tilted her head curiously "I love it here, actually. Anytime of the day when I feel confused, I somehow find recluse here, it clears my mind and lets me think. The wind and beautiful view during daylight, and the amazing night sky, somehow those things make me feel happy when I'm alone."

"You're right, the night sky is beautiful." she said as she looked up at the sky above them, not realizing that they still held each others' hand.

"Meyrin, somehow, I feel like there was something out of place yesterday, something left unfinished." he said as he turned to face her

"Unfinished? What do you mean?" she asked, unsure of where this conversation was going

"I came here to fight for what I thought was right, but in doing so, I found something...or someone to fight for." he then gently released her hand and wrapped his arms around her

"Rey..." Meyrin trailed off as the blonde took her in his arms again, though this time it felt different. He had held her tighter this time, as if she was the last person in the world for him.

"This...might be the last time I can be with you like this, and I just wish we can stay like this longer." he said in an affectionate tone, something very unusual for the calm and collected Rey Za Burrel.

Meyrin found herself returning his embrace, "Me too Rey, now that you're here, I don't want to lose you, I don't want you to leave me alone." she said equally affectionate.

Rey loosened his arms around her and looked at her "I'll protect you, Meyrin. I promise." he found himself slowly closing the gap between them, both their faces getting hotter as he gradually inches his towards hers, closing their eyes at the last moment, Rey's lips met Meyrin's. It was no ways a passionate kiss, but it was enough for both of them to convey what they were to each other. As they reluctantly broke apart, Rey once again looked deeply into Meyrin's eyes.

"I love you." was all that was needed. The two looked up at the evening moon that was still present early morning and smiled before they walked back to the ship's halls hand in hand.

Meanwhile, Shinn had already finished inputting the specs of the Destiny in the Archangel's database and went to the only place he felt comfortable around the ship, the pilot's lounge. The pilot's lounge in the Archangel was different from that of the Minerva, wherein the Minerva had quite a luxurious lounge with coffee tables and such, this one was quite plain, cheap even, if you put it beside the Minerva's. Shinn stood at the far end of the lounge, looking out over the open window towards the busy hangar.

"It's rare for you to go and stare out at something and not say a word." said Luna as she walked beside and handed him a can of iced coffee which she got from the nearby vending machine.

Shinn took the canned beverage and took a sip "It's nothing...just something I had in mind for a while now." he said before he looked back out the window

"Mind telling me what that is? I'd be glad to help." asked Luna, concerned as to what was bothering her friend.

"That's just it. I don't know if you can help me." Luna's worries were now evident on her face as he said those words "Thing is, it's you that's on my mind. The battle of ORB, I don't know what happened but I know I tried to hurt you, knowing fully well who you were...and what you were to me." the last bit made Luna's heart skip a beat, but hearing him mention that encounter hurt her even more than it hurt him.

Images of the battle flashed through Luna's mind, from when she agreed to take the Amethyst into battle, faced off against Shinn and Rey, and first activated her SEED and suddenly became on par in battle against Shinn. Even though she passed out from exhaustion at the end of it, she could still remember everything clear as day. Luna was really relieved inside, knowing that she would never have to fight against Shinn again, now that he was on her side. She would never have to think about what would happen if they met against each other again, perhaps it was the spread of luck for her, Shinn, Rey and Meyrin to still be together even after everything that had happened.

"Shinn..." Luna put a hand on Shinn's shoulder, he looked back to her in surprise "What happened back then...I don't blame you for what you did, if I knew better I'd say I too tried to hurt you. I left without saying anything, and I can understand how hard it must've been for you. To be honest, it hurt me more to think that I abandoned you just like that." she said before looking away from him. "So please...don't be so hard on yourself, we're in this together." her hand trailed down from his shoulder to his arm, which she gripped tightly. "I'm scared..." she muttered weakly

Shinn's eyes widened in surprise as he felt her hand trembling on his arm, squeezing it tighter. "Luna..." he trailed off as he let go of the now-empty can he was holding and slowly wrapped his arms around her. "I'm scared too, Luna, but we have no other choice." he told her, having heard what she had just said.

Luna froze at Shinn's sudden embrace, but she soon found herself returning the affection. Silence stood between them for moments until their arms loosened. They looked at each other and Shinn finally spoke "Lunamaria, I...I.." as Shinn was about to speak however, Luna placed her finger over his lips.

"Shhh." she quick hushed him before putting her finger down and gave a warm smile "Allow me." as soon as she said it, she quickly bridged the gap between their face, holding onto his shoulders, she let her soft lips meet his. Shinn was caught off guard by the encounter for a moment, and as Luna slowly pulled away, he looked at her intently for a few seconds before pulling her to him by the waist and gently returning the kiss she gave him. They pulled apart later, having held the kiss longer than the first.

Again, silence was amidst the two of them, but it wasn't the same unnerving silence that was there earlier, they smiled at each other and took each others' hand as they walked from the pilot's lounge and back to the ship's halls. It was of mere coincidence that they encountered Rey and Meyrin walking down the halls in the same circumstances as them. The two pairs looked over each other and after realizing what was the same between them, it was all smiles and laughter.

"I'm not gonna ask how things happened on your end, but aren't we lucky?" said Shinn as he looked at Rey and Meyrin's hands joined together.

"Yeah, we really are." replied Rey "For once, I really felt like everything was in place, where it was needed to be." he added

The Hawke sisters looked at each other and smiled

"_**Happy endings." **_said Luna

"_**If only there was no more war to fight." **_said Meyrin

"_**Yeah, but I promise you Meyrin, we will all come back here. We will all have our happy ending." **_assured Luna, she knew even if things work out with Rey, which seems to be case, Meyrin would still worry about the upcoming battles.

"_**I believe you, sis." **_replied Meyrin

Just then, Athrun walked down the halls and saw the Minerva people together, he opted to slow his pace down as they haven't noticed him yet. As he saw the joined hands and happy smiles in the group, he closed his eyes and smiled. _At first glance, it would seem like all four of them were just bound by chance, but now that I look at it, I'd say they were fated to meet each other. _His train of thought was interrupted when Shinn called out to him.

"Oh, Athrun, what are you doing here?" the young ace asked

"I was actually looking for you guys," replied Athrun "there's been a change of plans, apparently." he added

"Change of plans? What exactly does that mean?" asked Rey

"Once we get in orbit, we won't exactly head straight to the PLANTS right away." began Athrun "The ORB Military's planning an intelligence mission on the Lunar City of Copernicus, so apparently, we're to head there first before planning the assault."

"What about LOGOS? What do we do with them?" asked Luna, taking note that Lord Djibril had escaped ZAFT's custody during the Battle for ORB.

Athrun sighed "I don't know, there's no word of their activity yet, but I feel they're gonna come out sooner or later." he then said, with the tension between ZAFT and them increasing due to the series of desertions, LOGOS was the least of their concerns, at least for the moment. "Still, our priority is to get to Copernicus as soon as possible. Thruster replacements for the Archangel are going rapidly, we might leave Kaguya in about two hours earlier than expected." Athrun proceeded to walk back down the hall, but stopped midway and looked over his shoulder "If you guys want a nice view outside, there's a stairway leading up to the top of the bridge, you can find the pathway along the bridge elevator." he said before continuing on down the hall.

The Minerva people simply stared after Athrun, not sure what to make of his last statement. Just then, Meyrin had an idea. "I think we better head up there, this might be the last time we're going to see such a view after all, right?" she asked

"Yeah, Meyrin's right. Come on, we only have about 2 more hours before things get moving." said Shinn. Everyone agreed and soon, they found themselves walking up at spiral staircase that led to a hatch on the top. When they opened it, just like Athrun said, they found themselves on the roof of the Archangel's bridge, the highest spacious point on the whole ship. Rey and Shinn propped themselves up from the staircase onto the roof and helped the two girls get up. Once everyone was up, they all sat down and marveled at the moon and it's blurry reflection on the lake.

"You know, I thought I've already seen too much of the night sky too much today, but I guess I can't get enough of it." said Rey, earning looks from Shinn and Luna. "Perhaps the moon always brings me luck, because every time I look at it, good things always happen, and today was no different." Meyrin tried to hide her blushing face as Rey referenced what happened earlier, and because she was sitting next to him, Luna caught that reaction spot on, and proceeded to flash a mischievous smirk.

"Eh, so what happened, Rey? Smooches under the moon?" teased Luna, which made Meyrin purse her lips and turn redder, Rey meanwhile...

"Huh? What? What was that?" Rey was undoubtedly red in the face, and was caught off guard as Luna's guess hit the mark.

"That's so sweet of you two." teased Shinn, they were seeing a more vulnerable side of Rey Za Burrel here, something that is as rare as diamonds.

"Cu-cut it out, you two!" said Meyrin, pouting as face was now as red as tomatoes. Shinn and Luna just laughed at the pair's reaction.

"How about you two then, how did things work out for you?" asked Rey, just like him, both Shinn and Luna were caught off guard by his question, but somehow, they both had an excuse for themselves.

"Nothing special, reminded me how tasty chocolate milk was." said Shinn

"Hey, but didn't you have coffee? I remember me having the chocolate milk...ah" Luna gasped and looked away from Shinn, face fully flushed as she realized what he implied.

"Hmm? And I bet you had the best coffee of your life, sis?" Meyrin teased, she winked and stuck out her tongue towards Luna, who was now glaring angrily at her

"Sh..shut up, Meyrin!" retored Luna, earning another round of laughter from everyone, including Shinn. Just then, they heard the hatch open up and quickly looked to see who followed them.

"Hey, I see you guys came here alright." said Athrun as he pushed himself up to the platform. "Mind letting me in on things?" he joked as he walked towards them and sat down. Eventually, everyone told each other the stories of what happened that day, Athrun meanwhile, merely listened in on everything and smiled. _Yup, they were fated alright. _

An hour later, the group went back down the Archangel and headed back to their rooms to rest up, they knew that the battles are just getting started, and each one of them fell asleep with the memories of today in their minds. After all, what happened today was enough to drown out the worries of the conflict. Shinn had finally released the heavy load he's been carrying the whole time: guilt, and being with Lunamaria was enough to give him the push he needed to snap out of his trance. Rey found a better reason to fight for than his own ideals, he found someone to fight for, someone to go back to after the battle, Meyrin. Their hours passed by in sleep and the Archangel has already taken to the skies.

On the bridge, Kira and Athrun talked about what they thought of the battles ahead.

"What do you think of the battles we'll face ahead, Athrun?" asked Kira "Will it be like the last time, where we fought for what we think is right?"

"No, we've always fought for that reason." replied Athrun "The question now is, what exactly are we going to fight against? The war has just begun, Kira, no one knows what lies ahead."

"You're right, I guess all we can do now is hope, hope that whatever it is we believe in leads to a world without the need for war, where everyone can live without one side desiring the death of the other."

"We'll get there, Kira. We came close once, but this time, we'll make sure it happens."

* * *

**Finally! After 8 months of absence this fic has finally got an update! Now I don't know how it happened, but everything got piled up and this fic was nearly forgotten, it wasn't until I came back to the Gundam SEED fanfic pages that I remembered I had one myself. So I'm very very veeery sorry if it took this long to update. I know most of you think it's dead but as I said nearly a year ago, this fic isn't dead until I say so. I just hope everyone still enjoyed this new chapter and as always, I'm not gonna promise any sooner updates.**

**PS. Do you guys enjoy the ReyxMeyrin pairing? I really need your opinions on this one because I like the idea myself and I just wanted to know if it appeals to others as well. **


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